the infinitive and the gerund-participle as complements of ... · with the infinitive and the...

MARYSE ARSENEAU .

THE INFINITIVE AND THE GERUND-PARTICIPLE AS COMPLEMENTS OF VERBS OF RISK'

Mémoire présenté à la Faculté des études supérieures de l'Université Laval dans le cadre du programme' de maîtrise en linguistique

pour l'obtention du grade de maître ès arts (M.A.)

, DÉPARTEMENT DE LANGUES, LINGUISTIQUE ET TRADUCTION F ACUL TÉ DES LETTRES

UNIVERSITÉ LA V AL QUÉBEC

2009

© MARYSE ARSENEAU, 2009

11

RÉSUMÉ

Ce mémoire, puisant à même certains principes de la linguistique cognitive et de la

psychomécanique du langage, porte sur la complémentation verbale de l'anglais avec

l'infinitif et le gérondif. Par l'entremise d'un corpus de données attestées, nous expliquons

les divers effets de sens et les principes qui sous-tendent l' usage des structures ' verbe

principal + complément' avec l'infinitif et le gérondif comme compléments de verbes

comportant une idée de risque, soit risk, venture, adventure, hazard, chance, dare, face ,

jeopardize, endanger et imperil. Plus particulièrement, les problèmes de temporalité et de

contrôle sont examinés. Trois paramètres permettent d'expliquer les effets de sens 'et le

contraste entre les structures à l'étude : 1) le sens grammatical du complément, 2) sa

fonction en relation avec le verbe principal, et 3) le sens lexical du verbe principal.

L'analyse des deux premiers paramètres est fondée sur les hypothèses proposées par

Duffley (2000 ; 2006).

111

ABSTRACT

This thesis, inspired by certain principles of Cognitive Linguistics and the

Psychomechanics of Language, deals with English verbal complementation with the to-

. infinitive and the gerund-participle. We explain the various expressive effects and the

principles underlying the use of the structures 'main verb + complement' with the infinitive

and the gerund-participle as complements of verbs comprising the notion of ' risk' , i.e. risk,

venture, adventure, hazard, chance, dare, face , jeopardize, endanger and imperil, through

the analysis of a corpus of attested usage. The general problems of tense and control are

addressed. Three parameters allow an explanation of the expressive effects of the structures

under study: 1) the grammatical meaning of the complement, 2) its function with respect to

the main verb, and 3) the lexical meaning of the main verb. The analysis of the fIfst two "-

parameters is based on the hypotheses proposed by Duffiey (2000; 2006).

IV

.JI sfiip in fiar60ur is safi - 6ut tfiat is not wfiat sfiips are for.

Jofin./f. Sfiedd

7'wenty years from now you wi[[ 6e more

disappointed 6y tfie tfiings tfiat you didn ft do

tfian 6y tfie ones you did do. SO tfirow off tfie

6owEines. Saie away from tfie safi fiar6or. Catcfi

tfie trade winds in your saies. ~t:ore. (j)ream.

(j)iscover.

v

FOREWORD

Heartfelt thanks are first extended to my thesis supervisor Professor Patrick J. Duffley. Your unwavering support to my research, your wisdom, your kindness and great patience really made a difference. 1 will keep the benefits and lessons leamed from working with you for the rest of my life.

Among aH other teachers and professors who inspired my studies, 1 first want to thank a very dedicated and talented ESL teacher, Rory Miller, who first got me interested in the English language. It's a fact; 1 must have asked you a thousand of questions on the workings of English. 1 must say 1 al ways got intelligent answers. That was about ten years ago, but my que st for knowledge has still not ended after you lighted that spark. 1 also wish to thank Professor Darlene LaCharité for tirst spreading the seed that would lead me to undertake Masters studies; thanks for your encouragement and beHef in my capacities. Professor Barbara Bacz also deserves acknowledgment. Your interest in my research, your thoughtful comments and your encouragement when times were a little more difficult were more than welcome. You helped me in more ways than you could think of. AIso, special thanks are extended to Professor Kirsten Hummel for trusting me and giving me the chance to participate in her research work in second language acquisition.

My cat Cassiopée also requested that her name be written here. After all, 1 agree; she supported me by sleeping countless ho urs on my desk and computer while 1 was trying to write something. Thanks Cassiopée just for being there when 1 was feeling rather lonely. You'll get one more hug for this (and perhaps sorne more treats as well).

Last but certainly not least, very special thanks go to my life partner Christian Landry, without whom the last six years of my life would have been much less interesting and much harder on me. Your love, presence and constant encouragement (and also the 1000 meals you cooked for me, the shoulder massages and the thousands hugs you gave me) kept me from going insane! Merci du fond du coeur d'être (encore!) là.

May 1 now find in myself the courage to take risks in walking along the path that is mine. "Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore" (André Gide).

This research benefited from tinancial support in the form of grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC/CRSH), the Fond de recherche sur la société et la culture (FQRSC) and the Fondation Madeli-Aide.

L-___________________ ___ __ _ ___ ___ - - ----

TABLE OF CONTENTS

RÉsUMÉ

ABSTRACT

FOREWORD

T ABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE: THE PROBLEM

1.1 INTRODUCTION

1.2 PREVIOUS WORK ON THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE GERUND-PARTICIPLE AND

THE INFINITIVE

1.2. l General vs. Particular

1.2.2 Hypothetical vs. Reification

1.2.3 Referring vs. Non-Referring Expressions

1.2.4 Factivity

1.2.5 Temporal Approach

1.2.6 Cognitive Grammar Approach

1.2.7 Presence of a Tense Operator

1.3 APPROACHES TO CONTROL

1.4 SUMMARY

CHAPTER Two: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

2.1

2.2

BASIC ASSUMPTIONS

P ARAMETERS U SED

2.2.1 The Meaning of the Gerund-Participle

2.2.2 The Function of the Gerund-Participle Complement

2.2.3 The Semantic Effect of the Gerund-Participle as Complement

2. 2~ 4 The Meaning of the to-infinitive

11

111

IV

VI

1

1

5

5

7

9

Il

13

17

22

23

33

34

34

37

37

38

40

42

VI

2.2.5 The Function of the to-infinitive as Complement

2.2.6 The Semantic Ejfect of the to-infinitive as Complement

2.3 SUMMARY

CHAPTER THREE: DATA ANALYSIS

3.1 INTRODUCTION

3.2 A NOTE ON SELECTING VERBS OF RISK

3.3 THE VERB RISK

3.3.1 Lexical Meaning and Complementation

3.3.2 Temporal and Control Effects

3.3.3 Role of the Complement in the Construction

3.3.4 Explanation ofTemporality and Control

3.4 THE VERBS VENTURE AND AD VENTURE




3.4.4 Explanation of Te mpo rality and Control

3.5 THE VERB HAZARD





3.6 THE VERB CHANCE





3.7 THE VERB DARE

3. 7.1 Lexical Meaning and Complementation


VIl

44

46

49

51

51

52

54

54

58

60

61,

62

62

71

72

73

76

76

81

82

84

87

87

91 .

91

92

93

93

98

3. 7. 3 Role of the Complement in the Construction


3.8 THE VERB FACE





3.9 THE VERBS JEOPARDIZE, IMPER/L, AND ENDANGER





4. CHAPTER FOUR: CONCLUSION

4.1

4.2

4.3

4.4

4.5

INTRODUCTION

SUMMARY OF TYPES OF COMPLEMENTATION FOUND IN CORPUS

EXPLANA TION OF TEMPORALITY

EXPLANA TION OF CONTROL

CONCLUDING REMARKS

BmLIOGRAPHY

VIl!

99

100

101

101

105

105

106

107

107

111

112

113

116

116

117

119

120

125

126

CHAPTER ONE: THEPROBLEM

1.1 INTRODUCTION

1

The area of English complementation constitutes one of the greatest challenges to a theory of syntax based on semantic foundations ... anybody wishing to seriouslyadvance the view that syntax has s eman tic foundations simply must meet the challenge of English complementation.

(Wierzbicka 1988: 21)

In this beginning of the 21 st century, the concept of risk seems to be just about

everywhere. The tragic events of September Il th 200 1 ~ natural catastrophes, climate

change, the unceasing wars and struggles in the Middle East, the spectre of AIDS and other

contagious diseases, and all the other challenges faced by our times have transfonned our

societies and have brought about a reign of fear. We are more than ever afraid of doing all

sorts of things for the wrath they might ineur on us. We now calculate the risks inherent to

almost everything we do; experts in risk assessment and risk management are guiding

decisions and actions in areas as diverse as finance, medicine, law, insurance, economy and

industry.

In the English language, there are a number of verbs which include in their

semantics a certain notion of risk, namely risk, venture, adventure, hazard, chance, face,

dare, jeopardize, imperil, and endanger. More precisely, these verbs, which we will caU

here verbs of risk, share a common element of meaning in that they include in their

meaning exposure to the possibility or chance of a bad, unpleasant or undesired outcome.

In addition to sharing a semantic notion, verbs of risk also have something in common

syntactically in that they can all be used with complements. As is the case for other

2

semantic categories of verbs, there are many problems associated with the combination of

verbs of risk with an infinitive or a gerund-participle1• One of these is that although these

verbs are semantically related, they vary with respect to which complement they normally

occur with. For instance, traditional grammars classify risk as a verb taking only the -ing

(e.g. Swan 2003: 294), as in (1) below:

(1) She risked losing me, however unhappy it made her, to keep your name clear. (British National Corpus: lY8 4642)

On the other hand, venture normally takes a tv-infinitive (Collins Cobuild: 1860) as in the

following example:

(2) It was at that moment that he ventured to propose to her. (BNC: CD2 1174)

Why does one verb 'prefer' an -ing form rather than a tv-infinitive and vice versa? .The

distribution of these verbs with non-finite complements obviously needs to be explained; to

tbis effect, the factors contributing to this distribution need to be investigated. T 0 our

knowledge, no systematic study of the verbs of risk in their uses with the gerund-participle

and the infinitive as complement has been done. Only a few comments regarding these

verbs are found in the literature, principally as to which verbs take the infinitive or the -ing,

as we saw above. It will thus be our goal in this study to explain the various expressive

effects and the principles underlying the use of the structures 'main verb + complement'

with the infinitive and the gerund-participle as complements of verbs comprising the notion

of 'risk'. We will however limit our analysis of the type illustrated in example (1) and (2)

above, that is, where the main verb is followed directly by a complement. Uses where

another element intervenes between the main verb and the tv-infinitive are more complex

and will therefore be left to future research. An extensive examination of corpora will also

provide information as to the validity of the common view that the verbs of risk examined

1 Note that Huddleston & Pullum (2002: 80) use the term "gerund-participle" to refer to the -ing form. We will follow their usage of the term here, as we agree that "the use of a single term to refer to the inflectional form of the verb marked by the -ing sufflx seems perfectly justified by the grammatical morphology of English" (Duftley 2006a: 1).

3

here can only be followed directly by one of the two complements (to-infinitive or gerund

participle) and not by the other.

On the lexicallevel, there seems to be a parallel between the verbs risk and venture,

so that in sorne cases they even seem interchangeable. For instance, both sentence (3) and

(4) seem to be appropriate in most contexts:

(3) 1 risked a comparison.

( 4) 1 ventured a comparison.

In the example below, venture could also be easily replaced by risk without much change

in the message conveyed:

(5) Shrugging off his pack, Demarr ventured a glance around the large rock behind which he had taken refuge. (Robson 2000: 3)

Here, venture a glance could be paraphrased as 'take the risk of looking in one direction'.

However, risk would not do to replace the verb venture in the following context:

(6) Her expression was almost welcoming and Melissa ventured to sit beside her. (BNC: GVP 2079)

As we can see from this brief discussion, a good look at the lexical content of these two

verbs, and other verbs of risk as weIl, is certainly needed in order to explain these facts of

usage and these verbs' selection of the gerund-participle or the infinitive as complements.

On a more general level, the combination of verbs of risk with a complement poses

two problems typically associated with any structure of the type 'main verb + complement'

with the infinitive and the gerund-participle. The first concems the temporal relation

between the events expressed by the verbs, a problem which has been referred to as the

question of 'tense' and which can be illustrated by the contrast between (7) and (8):

4

(7) He tried opening the window.

(8) He tried to open the window.

In the first example there is a relation of simultaneity between the 'trying' and the

'opening'; in the second sentence on the other hand, there is a relation of subsequence. The

problem of 'tense' is also an issue with verbs of risk. Thus in (9) below the complement

event is subsequent to the main verb's event, while in (10) it is contemporaneous:

(9) Millions of families face losing their homes to foreclosure.

(10) 1 was feeling so up-beat that 1 risked mentioning it to my family.

We shall tackle the problem of temporality in this study in order to propose explanations

for the facts of usage found with verbs of risk.

The problem of 'control' concems the identification of the subject of the

complement. This question has recently been the center of much attention, as sorne

linguists are seeking arguments from it to support the Minimalist Program (e.g. Homstein

1999; Boeckx & Homstein 2004; Landau 2003; Culicover & Jackendoff2005). As with the

examples above with try, the subject. of the complement can be identical to the subject of

the main verbe However, it can also be distinct, as in sentence (11):

(11) He recommended opening the window.

With most verbs of risk, the subject of the complement seems always to be understood as

identical to that of the main verbe We wish to verify with attested data whether this is

indeed the case and to propose an explanation for the control readings found with these

verbs.

Apart from these theoretical concems, we feel that the study undertaken here can

play a role in the improvement of the teaching of English as a second language. The

approach to the teaching of verbal complementation ta advanced students as represented by

5

reference grammars such 3$ Swan (2003) and teaching manuals such as Bland (2008), i.e.

giving a list of verbs allowing only an infinitive versus those allowing only a gerund

participle, seems rather unsatisfactory. Indeed, there is nothing like this to encourage

laziness and kill students' curiosity. We agree with Duffley (1990) when he says that

"grammar has to be seen as more than just a collection of mIes, of do' s . and don't' s, in

order for it to reflect the way native English speakers really speak and to become a positive

factor for stimulating the student' s curiosity and desire to leam" (p. 88). It is rnainly

through a better understanding of how the English language works that we will be able to

offer better explanations to ESL students.

Before proposing our analysis, however, we must first review the vanous

approaches which have been taken to the general problem of verbal complementation with

the infinitive and the gerund-participle. Since there is quite an abundant literature on the

subject, we will limit ourselves to highlighting the general tendencies of description and

explanation found in the work of certain prominent authors. It will be se en that, although

sorne of these studies bring valuable contributions to the field, there are still sorne

important issues that need to be addressed.

1.2 PREVIOUS WORK ON THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE GERUND

P ARTICIPLE AND THE INFINITIVE

1.2.1 General vs. Partïeular

A fair number of grammarians have traditionally looked at the distinction between

the gerund-participle and the infinitive in terms of the distinction between general versus

particular reference. Among others, Sweet (1903), Jespersen (1940), Wood (1956),

Kruisinga & Erades (1960), Zandvoort (1969), and Schibsbye (1970) have made this

distinction or have at least alluded to it. According to this view, "the use of the verbal ing

gives the sentence the character of a general statement that is applicable in all cases and

consequently also in the one under discussion, whereas the verb stem is used to refer to the

6

case in hand only" (Kruisinga & Erades 1960: 336). Schibsbye (1970) gives the following

examples to show the contrast between the two types of complement:

(12) l like getting up early.

(13) l should like to get up early tomorrow. (p. 28)

He argues that in the first sentence, "the gerund refers chiefly to the action in general",

while in the second sentence "the infinitive refers chiefly to the particular occasion" (p. 27).

This analysis illustrates a recurrent problem in the analysis of complementation: frequently,

the explanation of the two complements' meaning is based on the overall rneaning or

expressive effect of the sentence, not on the contribution of its parts, that is the words and

the morphemes, to the creation of this overall effect. For instance, in (13) above, the author

should have acknowledged the fact that the impression of reference to a particular situation

is due to the meaningof the word tomorrow (p. 28).

Similarly, Jespersen (1940) gives the following two examples:

(14) l hate lying.

(15) l hate to lie.

and argues that the first sentence refers to the "vice in general", while the second one

applies to "this particular case" (p. 192). While it is true that one may get an impression of

generality or particularity from a sentence containing an -ing or a to-infinitive, this is not

always the case. Indeed, in a sentence like (16) below, the interpretation is clearly that of a

particular event, the opposite of what we should expect if the gerund-participle denoted the

activity in general:

(16) A wornan faced losing all her limbs last night after being bitten by a tiny spider. (BNC: CH6 4090)

Moreover, contrary to what is claimed by the grammarians cited above, the infinitive can

also evok.e a generic or habituaI event in (17):

7

(17) She is a beautiful filly and likes to trot. (BUC: E09 0910 in Duffley 2006a)

Here, as noted by Duffley, the sense expressed by li/œ + to-infinitive is that of 'always be

ready and willing to' (p. 77).

Curiously, authors adhering to this type of approach even contradict each other,

sometimes claiming the exact opposite distinction. In her extensive study of what she caUs

'aspectuals', Freed (1979) postulates that a to-infinitive used as complement entails a

"generic reading" while the gerund-participle "refers to the unspecified duration of a

SINGLE EVENT" (p. 152):

(18) That never ceases to amaze me.

(19) Lacey ceased crying when she heard her parents come in the door. (p. 153)

While this is true of these particular uses, Freed' s approach is unable to account for cases

where the gerund-participle refers to something in general and where the to-infinitive refers

to a particular case, such as Jespersen' s uses seen above.

Since both the gerund-participle and the to-infinitive can create an impression of

generality or particularity, a distinction between the two forms obviously cannot be based

on these expressive effects. As the examples with verbs of risk presented above show, this

approach cannot account for the distribution of the two complements with this set of verbs

either. Finally, we have to conclude that such a view is not based on a sufficiently extensive

examination of the data, as counterexamples are easily found.

1.2.2 Hypothetical vs. Reification

A more global approach to complementation is taken by Bolinger (1968). His

approach is based on the belief that "the complementizers are chosen for their own sake,

not as a mechanical result of choosing something else" (p. 122). For him, the choice of a

complement depends on the choice of the main verb, but also on the meaning of the

8

complement. He claims that where a semantic contrast can be discemed between the -ing

and the infinitive it is that of reification versus hypothesis or potentiality. Accordingly, he

argues that a normal context for example (20) below would be an observation made by

someone actually playing golf in the rain (p. 126):

(20) 11' s nice playing golf in the rain.

(21) 11' s nice to play golf in the rain.

In contrast, sentence (21) would better suit an observation made in general terms (p. 126).

In fact, Bolinger recognizes that the contrast he proposes for the gerund-participle and the

infinitive is not always realized (p. 124). For him, "what counts is the fact that where a

semantic contrast can be discemed it is along the lines of reification versus hypothesis" (p.

126).

Bolinger's approach has also influenced the work of many other grammarians. The

distinction hypothetical vs. reification echoes through the very influential A Comprehensive

Grammar of English (1985) by Quirk et al., in which it is claimed that "as a mIe, the

infinitive gives a sense of mere 'potentiality' for action", while "the participle gives a sense

of the actual 'performance' of the action itself' (p. 1191). The two examples below are

given to illustrate this point:

(22) Sheila tried to bribe the jailor.

(23) Sheila tried bribing the jailor.

Quirk argues that, in (22), "Sheila attempted an act of bribery, but did not manage if', and

that (23) implies that "she actually did bribe the jailor, but without (necessarily) achieving

what she wanted" (p. 1191). While making no attempt at giving a semantic definition of 10-

infinitival and -ing complements, Huddleston & Pullum, the authors of The Cambridge

Grammar of the English Language (2002), also make sorne comments that show Bolinger's

influence: commenting on a pair sirnilar to the one above, they state that with the 10-

1

9

infmitive try "involves effort towards a goal: the opening is only potential", while when

combined with the gerund-participle it "indicates actual activity" (p. 1243).

Unfortunately, one does not have to look very far to find counterexamples. The

category ofhypotheticality can hardly account for an example such as (24):

(24) l chanced to meet him at the shopping center.

Where the to-infinitive obviously denotes an accomplished event. Moreover, the idea that

the -ing refers to an event as actualized cannot apply to the following example with the verb

risk:

(25) You can wear a tweed coat if you like but you risk being cold and wet. (BNC: B03 1171)

Here, the -ing obviously refers to an event which is not yet realized; in fact, the event of

being cold and wet is purely hypothetical.

As was the case with the 'general versus particular' analysis, Bolinger, Quirk et al.,

and Huddleston & Pullum's analyses are also based on the overall meaning of the sentences

rather than on that of the complements themselves. Although there is an attempt to provide

an intrinsic meaning for each type of complement, this meaning is in fact tied only to

certain uses of these forms and does not achieve sufficient generality.

1.2.3 Referring vs. Non-Referring Expressions

Conrad's approach (1982) to complementation with the gerund-participle and the

infinitive is very close to that of Bolinger. However, instead of the distinction between

hypothetical and reification, Conrad proposes that the basis of the contrast between

gerundial and infinitival complements is to be found in referentiality. Thus, it is argued that

the gerund functions as a referring NP, i.e. "the gerund always refers to one locatable

instance, or severallocatable instances, of actions, processes, states, etc" (p. 91):

10

(26) 1 practiced talking the way they did.

According to Conrad, in (26) above, the -ing is interpreted as referring, since it is

understood as denoting the actual performance of sorne action (p. 172). On the other hand,

the infinitive is clairned to be non-referring, i.e. it has "the negative characteristic that it

does not refer to concrete individual instances of the action" (p. 146). In fact, Conrad

claims that the infinitive usually evokes rnere dispositions, as is the case after verbs of

ernotional reaction:

(27) He liked to read aloud to thern on Sundays. (p. 165)

Interestingly, in his section on the -ing and the infinitive after 'activity

characterizing verbs', Conrad discusses the verb risk. He gives the following two examples

. with the gerund-participle, where according to him risk doing something me ans do

something which is dangerous:

(28) The manager risked shaking his head.

(29) But he thought he rnight risk changing the subject. (p. 173)

In these cases, Conrad clairns that the -ing can be interpreted as referring since it implies

that the action has actually been performed. However, he points out that there is another use

of risk "in which it has future time relation":

(30) Sorne widows embark on a rnake-shift second marri age , often aware that they risk making a rnistake which will not be easily rectified.

(31) Many grammar schools would rather send their boys to a provincial university, which they know, rather than risk being tumed down at Oxbridge. (p. 1 73)

In these two examples, the gerund denotes a potential, future action that has not been

realized and the complement is consequently non-referential. Thus, where we should expect

a to-infinitive, we find a gerund instead. Conrad accounts for this type of use by' stating that

Il

"after risk the gerund is neutral with respect to the difference between the gerund and the

infinitive after try2" (p. 173).

Obviously, the way Conrad ,deals with such examples as those above with the verb

risk is unsatisfactory. This is only one case of the many 'exceptions' to his theory that he

discusses in passing. For this reason, referentiality does not appear to be a pertinent

semantic factor for distinguishing between the infinitive and the -ing with verbs of risk; as

the data discussed above shows, it is simply not general enough to account for aIl cases in

discourse.

1.2.4 Factivity

Another approach to complementation is taken by Kiparsky & Kiparsky (1971).

Although this analysis is from a different school than Bolinger' s, in essence it is very

similar, as Bolinger' s notions of potentiality and reification have had an important

influence on the Kiparskys. In tum, the Kiparskys themselves have also exerted

considerable influence on subsequent work by authors such as Stockwell et al. (1973),

Menzel (1975) and Givon (1990), the latter gn~mmarian proposing a distinction similar to

that of Kiparsky & , Kiparsky using the notion of 'implicativity'.

In their influential article, the two grammarians make the claim that the choice of

complement type can be explained in terms of 'factivity'. Thus, the gerund-participle is

said to occur only after 'factive predicates', meaning that the speaker presupposes that the

complement of the sentence expresses a true proposition, as in:

(32) 1 regret having agreed to the proposaI.

(33) 1 don't mind your saying so. (p. 347)

2 In general terms, the difference between the gerund and the infmitive after try is simply claimed to be that between referential vs. non-referential (p. 172-173).

12

The 'factive' notion is believed to be found in the deep structure of the se predicates. On the

other hand, to-infinitive can only occur with 'non-factive predicates', that is those

predicates where there is no presupposition of the complement' struth as, for example, in:

(34) 1 believe Mary to have been the one who did it.

(35) 1 supposed there to have been a mistake somewhere. (p. 348)

There are however more than a few problems with the Kiparskys' approach. First of

aU, factivity does not always permit one to distinguish between the to-infinitive and the

gemnd-participle complemènts, as the Kiparskys point out that a number of verbs including

anticipate, remember and admit occur with both factive and non-factive complements.

They pro vide justification for this fact by claiming that "such verbs have no specification in

the lexicon as to whether their compleme~ts are factive'" (p. 360). They do not explain how

and why these verbs are devoid of such specification however. In addition, Kiparsky &

Kiparsky point out that "the infinitive construction is excluded, for no apparent reason,

even with sorne non-factive predicates, e.g. charge" (p. 348). Once again., the y provide no

explanation for these 'irregularities' or 'exceptions' in their system. One last problem is

that they postulate another semantic distinction caUed 'emotivity' to explain why sorne

factive predicates such as regret can also occur with the to-infinitive:

(36) 1 regret for you to bein this fixe (p. 363)

The claim is that factivity does not operate with emotive complements, Le. "those to which

the speaker expresses a subjective, emotional, or evaluative reaction" (p. 363). How and

why such a mIe appHes is not explained however.

Abstract logical notions such as propositions and tmth values, which were

developed in order to deal with sentences and the messages they convey, are not

appropriate tools for dealing with the meanings of word-Ievel or morpheme-Ievel forms

such as the complement forms which are the object ofthis study. Moreover, there are major

problems with the Kiparskys" approach in that it is unable to deal with certain uses of the

13

gerund-participle and the infinitive in a satisfactory manner. The Kiparskys do not discuss

the meanings of the infinitive and the gerund-participle explicitly, the two complements

being only accounted for in terms ofwhether the predicate they occur with is factive or not.

1.2.5 Temporal Approach

Attempts to explain the distinction between the gerund-participle and the 10-

infinitive complements in terms of temporal impressions are quite common in the literature.

Dixon (1984) was one of the earliest to make claims regarding the distinction between the

-ing and the to-infinitive complements on the basis oftemporality, claims which have been

refined and improved in Dixon (1992; 1995). Dixon's hypotheses draw on the postulates

that "there is a universal pool of grammatical construction types, and each language draws

its own selection from the pool" (1995: 175). Interestingly, one univers al he proposes

seems to have been inspired by Bolinger' s distinction between potentiality and reification,

as Dixon claims that there are always two possibilities for all languages which have

complement clauses: "a 'potential (irrealis)' type, typically referring to something that has

not happened but which people want or intend should happen (as in '1 want to go', '1

ordered him to run'); and an 'actual (realis)" type, typically referring to sorne existing or

certain event or state (e.g. '1 remembered that he had go ne " '1 decided that 1 would

apply')" (p. 183). This universal can be intemally nuanced in different languages, sorne of

them making distinctions between various sub-types of potentiality or actuality. Dixon's

distinction between the to-infinitive and the gerund-participle is made partly in terms of

temporality, although one of his types of TO complement (the 'modal' type) is said to be

derived from the 'potential' univers al , while the -ing complement is se en as an 'actual

construction' .

Although Dixon's work is driven by the search for universals, his approach to

complementation is largely semantic; for him, "which complement clauses a given verb

may accept is determined by the meaning of the verb and the meanings of the complement

clauses constructions" (1992: 207). More specifically, "an ING complement refers to an

14

activity or state as extended in time, perhaps noting the way in which it unfolds" (p.218), as

in (37):

(37) 1 propose (our) walking from John o'Groats to Land's End to raise money for charity.

This view of the -ing is clearly inspired by its use in the progressive construction in

English, Dixon claiming that the -ing in (37) "introduces the idea of a continuous a~tivity"

(p. 219). This example also shows that for Dixon, the durative view of the gerund

participle is not restricted to simultaneity with the main verb, his claim being that "the time

reference of an ING clause can often be inferred from the lexical meaning of the main

verb" (p. 219). Besides the case illustrated in (37) above where the -ing refers to

"something projected for the future", Dixon points out that this complement can also refer

to "something which took place in the past" (p. 219). Although Dixon is quite right in

pointing out the various temporal impressions the gerund-participle can give rise to, how

the idea of a continuous activity, i.e. durativity, can combine with a past or especially a

future impression defies the imagination. For instance in:

(38) If he had chosen as his running-mate a northem Christian, he would have risked losing the majority-Muslim vote in the heavily populated north, where he has no power base. (BNC: CRB 1325)

It is hard to conceive how the notion of a continuous activity can be reconciled with the fact

that the complement' s event in this case is understood to not have even occurred.

As for the to-infinitive, Dixon claims that there are two different types which both

have different meanings. The tirst type, the modal (FOR) TO complement, "refers to (the

potentiality of) the subject's getting involved in sorne activity" (p. 233), as in (39):

(39) 1 want Mary to be a doctor.

Here the complement is clearly future and non-realized. As to the second type of to

infinitive, the judgment TO complement, it refers to "a judgment or opinion which the main

15

clause subject makes, through the complement clause, generally relating to a state or

pro pert y of the subject of that clause" (p. 237). Example (40) below illustrates this type of

complement that has "a rather different meaning" (p. 222) than modal TO complements:

( 40) They declared Fred to be insane.

Here the complement's event is understood to be contemporaneous with that of the

main verb. Dixon's approach suffers from the same basic problem as aIl the others: the

overall meaning of the sentence is taken to be the meaning of the complement, i.e. of one of

its components. Moreover, the relation between the two types of complement is not totally

clear, and so one is left wondering how the same form can evoke two different notions, one

future and one judgemental.

Wierzbicka's (1988) approach can also be categorized as essentially temporal.

Working with a somewhat different framework than Dixon's although unmistakably

inspired by his early work on complementation (1984), Wierzbicka's work is part of the

pre-cognitivist era. She uses a 'natural-semantic metalanguage' in her description of the

meaning of complement structures which is composed of a hypothetical set of universal

semantic primitives. In 1988 this metalanguage contained 15 elements: 1, you, this,

someone, something, time, place, want, don 't want, say, think, know, imagine, become, and

part; in 2003 it had gone up to approximately 60 primitives. According to her, these

elements can combine in a limited number of patterns to render the meanings of real

language constructions.

Regarding the to-infinitive, which she terms the TO complement, it is associated

with a "personal, subjective, "first-person mode" (p. 164). Depending on the situation in

which this complement is used, at least one of these elements, 1 want, 1 think, or 1 know, is

present in its semantics. Accordingly, she postulates three types of TO complement: TO

and wanting, TO and opinion, and TO and emotion. The following three examples illustrat~

these respective types:

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ---

16

(41) Mary went to the library. (p. 28)

(42) Mary is said to he dishonest. (p. 46)

(43) 1 am eager to see Peter here. (p. 99)

Following Dixon, a second element which Wierzhicka claims is part of the semantics of the

to-infinitive is a "clear future orientation ('this will happen')" (p. 165). In example (41)

above, this future orientation is accounted for in the semantic description by the component

1 will:

(44) Mary went to the library because she thought this: 1 want this: 1 will read the latest issue of Language. (p. 28)

However, example (45) below presents a context where the presence of a future component

is less clear:

(45) 1 know Mary to be a Mormon.

Ta solve this problem, Wierzbicka invokes a disclaimer, which "if spelled out more

precisely, probably contains a reference to the future" (p. 166). Wierzbicka's approach to

the to-infinitive complement is thus too specifie to account for aIl its uses; as with the other

authors reviewed so far, it seems difficult to account for such example as (24) with chance.

lndeed, in both (24) and (45) the event evoked by the complement is actually already

realized, a fact which poses a problem for any approach that defines the to-infinitive as

denoting an event as future.

Regarding the gerund-participle, Wierzbicka claims that "the ING form refers

inherently to time; it has so to speak a temporal valence, which has to be satisfied" (p. 73).

Drawing a correspondence with participial uses, Wierzbicka postulates that the -ing

complement implies "sameness of time" (p. 69), with the restriction that this simultaneity in

time only applies with main verbs denoting actions, processes or states. When the -ing

combines with "atemporal semantic types such as facts and possibilities, it is free of the

17

'sameness of time' constraint because under those circumstances, time is irrelevant" (p.

69).

Wierzbicka' s approach to the gerund-participle is fraught with problems. For one

thing, contrary ta her claims, simultaneity is not always observed with temporal predicates

as examples (46) and (47) show:

(46) The longer they had delayed acting, the more diffi~ult it had become for them to act. (BNC: CDS 260)

(47) He postponed calling a meeting as long as he could. (Duffley & Tremblay 1994: 568)

In bath of these examples, the event denoted by the complement remains unrealized.

Moreover, sorne of Wierzbicka's semantic analyses seem rather far-fetched in their attempt

ta find sorne form of 'sameness of time'. Consider for instance (48) below and the

corresponding analysis she gives for it:

(48) 1 remember dancing with the Prince ofWales. -+-

1 can see in my mind this: '1 am dancing with the Prince ofWales'

1 can see this not because it is happening ta me now 1 can see this because sorne time before now

1 thought of the same thing: it is happening to me now. (p. 71)

This attempt to reconcile the obvious fact that the complement' s event is past and already

realized with Wierzbicka's presumption that the -ing has to imply sameness oftime seems

rather implausible. A final problem with this type of apprûach to the -ing is that it certainly

creates the illusion of two different -ings, one temporal and the other one atemporal,

thereby destroying the semantic unity of this form.

1.2.6 Cognitive Grammar Approach

The mûst recent studies on complementation have been conducted in the framework

of Cognitive Linguistics, and are more specifically influenced by Langacker' s Cognitive

18

Grammar. These studies bring a new perspective and new methods to the field. Langacker's

work on complementation (1991; 1992) was greatly inspired by Wierzbicka's (1988). Like

her, he claims that "temporal coincidence is also the hallmark of the -ing" (1991: 444). In

view of the rather obvious exceptions to this generalization, Langacker later weakens his

claims by saying that "the most one might hope to say for the entire class of such

constructions is that there is always sorne kind of overlap between the main- and

subordinate-clause profiles" (p. 445). To him, this is however not a challenge to the theory

that he puts forwar<L as prototype theory affords him the possibility of accounting for such

'exceptions' by treating them as extensions of the prototype, temporal overlap being "oruy

prototypical" (p. 445). As we shall see in Chapter 2, we will not satisfy ourselves here with

such an approach.

With respect to infmitival complements, Langacker agrees with Wierzbicka when

she argues that sorne vestige of the goal-directed sense of to as a path preposition is still

present when it is used as a complementizer, but oruy "if the claim is formulated at that

level of generality" (1992: 304). Indeed, prototype theory allows for this notion of goal

directedness to be manifested with different degrees of salience. In fact, Langacker even

argues that to is not a preposition when it is used in combination with an infinitive:

1 see no reason to believe that the infinitival to is still prepositional, or that it profiles any kind of spatial or other path with the infinitivalized process lying at its endpoint. To the extent that they are present, the path-like notions of goal and futurity can be attributed to the overall construction, the semantics of the main-clause verb, or unprofiled specifications in to 's base (p. 305).

The oruy aspect remaining of the original path sense of the preposition to that Langacker

acknowledges is that "the to-marked process receives a holistic construal vis-à-vis the main

clause relationship" (p. 305). Contra Langacker, however, it must be said that this holistic

construal is not due to the element to, as the examples below show in which the infinitive

with and without to can be compared:

(49) 1 had ten people to calliast night.

(50) 1 had ten people calliast night. (Duffley 2006a: 31)

1.

1

19

In the second sentence it is obvious that the bare infinitive by itself construes the event that

it represents as a whole. Moreover, the fact that these two sentences do not have the same

expressive effect caUs for acknowledging that to must bring sorne semantic content to the

whole construction. In view of these examples, Langacker' s approach to the to-infinitive

amounts to attributing no semantic value whatsoever to the element to in infinitival

complement constructions.

Verspoor (1996; 2000) also looks at verbal complementation from a cognitive

perspective, mostly concentrating on the -ing. Her approach uses the concepts ofperceptual

scope and construal relations, as she claims that the choice of a complement depends on the

construal in space, i.e. the perspective, of the conceptualizer (i.e. the speaker or the main

clause subject). Thus, she proposes that the -ing 's meaning is to symbolize an event as

"viewed from such a close range that the boundaries of the event are not within the

conceptualizer' s visual scope" (1996: 420-421); the boundaries being absent from his

perceptual scope, the conceptualizer only views a part of the event. This however amounts

to considering the gerund-participle to be an imperfective marker. Like many grammarians

before her, Verspoor grounds her view of the -ing on the assumption that "the -ing

symbolizes an ev;ent in progress" (p. 435). For instance, Verspoor claims that in example

(51) below "an -ing structure symbolizes that at the moment that the act of remembering or

imagining is taking place, a mental representation of at least part of the event itself causes

the recoUection" (p. 445):

(51) 1 remember taking out the garbage.

Can it really be said however that the -ing makes reference to part of the event here? The

event of taking out the garbage seems rather to be viewed as a complete action that has

already been performed. The analysis of the gerund-participle as an imperfective form is

also problematic for verbs of risk, as can be seen in (52) below:

(52) I risk offending him ifI don't go. (BNe: FRE 1942)

20

It seems hard to argue that the -ing' s event is viewed as incomplete in this case; offending is

necessarily seen as a whole here; moreover, it is future and non-realized.

Hamawand (2002)'s approach to complementation is very similar to that of

Verspoor, being based on the assumption that the selection of a type of complement clause

is the product of construal and semantic compatibility. By semantic compatibility, he

means that "every grammatical constituent has a meaning which contributes to the meaning

of the whole" (Hamawand 2002: 12), and that these constituents need to be compatible in

order to fit together. Hamawand considers the main verb, the complementizer and the

complement clause as relevant to the explanation of the choice of a type of complement.

While this approach to complementation is semantically more global than any we have seen

so far, it falls short of expectations, especially with regards to its treatment of the gerundive

complement. Hamawand claims that "the -ing gerund designates an imperfective simple

atemporal relation, which views only the internaI configuration of the process and

conceptualises it as unchanging through time" (p. 65). Following Langacker, he even says

that "to the -ing gerund, one can attribute precisely the same value that it has in the

progressive construction, referring specifically to an activity which is in progress at the

moment of time serving as the reference point for the utterance" (p. 99). It obviously goes

without saying that the same criticism addressed to Verspoor (1996) also applies here;

again, one sees the methodological error of taking one actual use of a form and treating it as

if it represented its full potential.

Regarding the meaning of the to-infinitive complement, Hamawand acknowledges

the semantic role played by to. He claims that the use of to with the infinitive in

complement clauses is motivated by its lexical meaning as a preposition, where it denotes

the notion of a path towards a goal (p. 95). Thus, he claims that in combination with the

infinitive, "to expresses motion, direction, inclination, etc. towards the action addressed by

the infinitive" (p. 95). Moreover, he argues that this meaning can be extended in two

different ways. The first one is 'subsequent potentiality', such as in (53) below, where the

realization of the complement's event is futurised with respect to that of the matrix verb:

21

(53) They planned to climb Mount Everest.

(54) They managed to climb Mount Everest. (p. 96)

The second extended meaning is 'subsequent actualization', such as in example (54)

above, where the event denoted by the complement is seen as realized as a consequence of

the main verb's event (p. 96). However, Hamawand claims that in sorne exceptional cases,

to expresses convolutions, a convoluted extension being "one which is not directly related

to the original concept" (p. 96). He gives as an example (55) below, where to would refer to

astate occurring at the time of the event denoted by the main verb:

(55) 1 believe him to be honest. (p. 96)

It should however be pointed out that this type of use involves a form of logical

subsequence: while (55) presents the speaker's beHef as a reality, the attribution ofhonesty

to the person referred to is represented as based on the speaker' s belief, i.e. dependent on

the latter. In other words, the person in question is associated to the property of being

honest by the belief of the speaker (cf. Duffley 2006a: 27-28).

In terms of the temporal relationship that these complements entertain with the

matrix verb, Hamawand claims that the to-infinitive denotes a relation of subsequence, as

seen above, while the -ing can evoke either simultaneity or anteriority (p. 68). While we

believe that the first generalization is correct, it is however not true that the gerund

participle is limited to simultaneity or anteriority in terms of its temporal relation with the

main verb as the event denoted by the gerund-participle can, also be subsequent to the event

denoted by the matrix verb, as in (9) above. Hamawand does not however seem to be aware

of this third possibility, nor of the cases where the -ing does not stand in any kind of

temporal relation with the main verb. For instance, in the sentence below, Duffley

(2006a:38-39) argues that it is not significant whether the solving of the housing problem

has already been accomplished or not:

(56) He described solving the housing problem as providing convenient housing for every citizen. (8ichting 1985: 127 in Duffley 2006a)

22

It is also interesting to note that there is a contradiction in Hamawand's treatment of the

gerund-participle: it is not clear at all how anteriority, which he claims is an extension of

the -ing 's prototypical meaning, can he derived from the prototype 'activity in progress'.

The notions of anteriority and ongoingness seem rather to he of contradictory nature. In

SUffi, although Langacker (1991; 1992), Hamawand (2002) and Verspoor (1996) propose a

fresh perspective on complementation with the gerund-participle and the infinitive by using

new methods of analysis, their hypotheses seem to he inadequate to address aIl the facts of

usage.

1.2. 7 Pres~nce of a Tense Operator

Another approach dealing with the temporality issue needs to he considered here

hefore proceeding further. Working from a generative standpoint, Stowell (1982) proposes

that the to-infinitive includes a tense operator, saying that "the tense of a to-infinitive is that

of a possible future" (p. 562). More precisely, this tense operator specifies that "the time

frame of the infinitival clause is unrealized with respect to the tense of the matrix in which

it appears" (p.562). Stowell gives the following two examples to illustrate his point:

(57) Jenny remembered [PRO to hring the wine].

(58) Jim tried [PRO to lock the door].

He then argues that, "in each case, the tense of the infinitival complement is understood as

heing unrealized with respect to the tense of the matrix" (p. 563); thus, in (57) "Jenny has

not yet hrought up the wine at the point at which she remembers to do so" (p. 563), while in

(58) "Jim does not succeed in locking the door when he tries to do so. However, what

Stowell has overlooked here is that in example (57), the combination of the verb remember

with a to-infinitive implies that the complement's event has actually been realized. How a

future . tense can imply the realization of the event it characterizes totally defies the

imagination. Stowell also applies his notion of tense to the gerund-participle. In contrast to

the to-infinitive, the gerund "has no intemally detennined tense and therefore that its

understood tense is determined extemally by the semantics of the control verb" (p. 563).

- - - - -- ------ - - ---- - ----- - -

23

However, the fact that both the gerund-participle and the to-infinitive can evoke events as

unrealized with respect to the main verb' s event seems to invalidate the claim that their

distinction is based on the notion of tense. As regards our own study, we will not refer to

the to-infinitive and the gerund-participle complements as intrinsically possessing tense.

We certainly recognize that their uses can give rise to temporal impressions with respect to

the main verb; however, rather than evoking abstract categories such as tense, we will adopt

a natural-Ianguage semantics approach, which works with the natural-meaning categories

of English.

1.3 APPROACHES TO CONTROL

Regarding the problem of control, various approaches have been taken over the

years, both of the syntactic and semantic type. In the brief section which follows, we shall

briefly discuss the history of research done on control, highlighting the more recent

developments.

The term 'control' was first coined by Postal (1970) to address the problem of cases

where an understood argument of a complement or adjunct clause is linked to an explicit

element locatedelsewhere in the sentence. In particular, control has been given special

attention in cases where infinitival or gerundial verb phrases lack an overt subject, as in

these examples found in Chierchia & McConnell-Ginet (1990: 247):

(59) John tried _ playing tennis.

(60) John tried _ to play tennis.

As Chierchia & McConnell-Ginet put it, the problem of control concerns the interpretation

of the 'missing subject'. Very early on in the history of control, 'raising' structures (61)

were distinguished from 'control' constructions (62):

(61) John seems to like Mary. (raising)

24

(62) John tried to like Mary. (control)

In very general terms, the two are differentiated by the fact that raising structures allow an

expletive subject and are able to form a passive with the embedded clause while preserving

the original Iileaning, as opposed to control structures which prohibit these syntactic

manipulations. It is also believed that the subject of a control structure will be understood

as having two thematic roles, whereas the subject of a raising structure is seen as playing

only a role associated with the embedded predicate. More recently, in the Government

Binding framework, the two are contrasted structurally along these Hnes:

(63) Johni seems [ti to like Mary].

(64) JOhni tried [PROi to like Mary].

The first syntactic approach to control to emerge was Rosenbaum's Equi-NP

deletion (Rosenbaum ·1967). Under this view, a sentence such as (65) below was derived

from (66), and a copy of the controller, here the subject of the main clause, was thought to

appear as subject of the infinitive clause and to be subsequently deleted:

(65) John promised to go.

(66) John promised [John to go].

To account for the choice of the controller Rosenbaum proposed a Minimal Distance

Principle (MDP), according to which the closest c-commanding potential antecedent has to

be taken as controller. This principle predicts that when there is a direct object, that object

must be the controller of the infinitival complement, as it is closer to it than the subject. Its

most famous problem was however that it failed to account for verbs like promise, where

the controller of the complement clause generally coincides with the subject of the matrix

clause and not with the closest NP, as predicted by MOP:

(67) John promised Mary to clean the room.

25

Thus, verbs of the promise-type are most often marked as exceptions in syntactic theories.

Postal (1970) subsequently proposed the existence of a pronoun having no phonological

realization called Doom as an equivalent of the Equi-NP deletion. Eventually,Doom

became the pronominal element PRO of the Government Binding Theory. As seen in (64)

above, it is believed that PRO, by means ofbinding theory, is linked to an antecedent which

is its controIl er. PRO is also believed to receive its 9-role by structural principles. Later

approaches to control include work done in the framework of Montague Grammar (e.g.

Thomason 1976; Bach 1979; Dowty 1985) and Lexical-Functional Grammar (Bresnan

1982).

The last decade bas se en a renewal of interest in the problem of control resulting in

an intense publication of work in this field. In particular, syntactic approaches to the

problem of the 'missing subject' in the framework of Minimalism have been the object of

much debate. Minimalism tries to do away with many transformations and devices

traditionally used in Government Binding theory. While this mainstream syntactic theory

uses the binding of an abstract PRO to explain control, Homstein (1999) argues that

obligatory control (OC) structures (i.e. cases where the subject of the complement is the

same as the subject of the main verb) can be accounted for by movement alone, proposing

that for these structures "PRO is simply a residue of movement - the product of copy-and- .

deletion operations that relate two 9-positions" (68). Thus OC PRO is seen as identical to

an NP-trace, and (68) is believed to be derived from (69), through a succession of syntactic

operations:

(68) John hopes to leave.

(69) [œ John [vp John [hopes [IP John to [vp [John leave ]]]]]. (p. 79)

In (69), John tirst merges with the verb leave, checking the verb's a-role, before raising to

the specifier position of the IP where it checks the D-feature of the IP. Then, John moves to

the specifier of the upper VP where it checks the external 9-feature of the verb hope.

Finally, John raises to [Spec, IP] of the matrix verb where it checks the D-feature of the IP

and also the Case. It must be noted that because of Homstein's assumption that a DINP

26

"receives" a 8-role by checking a 8-feature of a verbal/predicative phrase that it merges

with, John ends up with two cases, "the leaver role and the hoper role" (p. 79), a

consequence of treating OC PRO as movement. Moreover, the null Case associated with

PRO, proposed by Chomsky and Lasnik (1993) is unnecessary in this analysis of OC PRO.

Other analyses done in the spirit of eliminating PRO from UG include Manzini & Roussou

(2000), Boeckx & Homstein (2003), Barrie (2003), and Cecchetto & Oniga (2004). In

general, the arguments provided to eradicate PRO have to do with the stipulatory nature of

PRO and null Case, and of course the flagrant lack of evidence for the existence of PRO.

Homstein's innovative approach to control has however been criticized by many in

recent years (e.g. Landau 2003; Culicover & Jackendoff 2001). Indeed, his attempt to

reduce sorne cases of control to movement, eliminating PRO in favour of a trace and

abandoning the 9-criterion, is a major departure from Govemment and Binding Theory.

Culicover & Jackendoff (2005) have argued against such a strictly syntactic account of

control, referring to the possibility of dissociating the choice of the controller from

syntactic motivations. They show that "the same syntactic configuration can be associated

with different controller choice" (p. 419), as seen in (70) below, and that "the controller can

appear in different syntactic configurations, while preserving meaning", as (71) shows:

(70) a. Johni talked about iJgendancing with Jeff. b. Johni refrained from iJ-gendancing with Jeff. c. JOhni persuaded Sarahj to j/* i dance. d. Johni promised Sarahj to iI*j dance.

(71) a. Fredi's order from Bill [to ileave immediately]. b. The order from Bill to Fredi [to ileave immediately]. c. Bill ordered Fredi [to ileave immediately]. d. Fredi received Bill's order [to ileave immediately].

In (71), the fact that Fred is the recipient of the order and the controUer of leave remains

true across widely different syntactic structures. Culicover & Jackendoff (2005) argue that

the solution to such problems has to be provided on the semantic level, or rather by what

they call the "conceptual structure" (p. 469). In this study, we will follow Culicover &

Jackendoffs lead in favouring a semantic approach over a syntactic one, although we will

------ ----~~

27

not adopt their view of semantics. This choice is motivated frrst of aIl by the fact that the

existence of a syntactic entity such as PRO is highly questionable, as it is a form which has

no observable physical existence. Secondly, we agree with Culicover & Jackendoff (2001;

2005) when they argue against analysing control in purely syntactic terms based on the

evidence that the semantic content of the constituents of the syntactic structure obviously

plays a crucial role in detennining control relations.

Other authors have also studied control in terms of semantics. Parkas (1988)

proposed an approach to control for a selected group of verbs in which controller choice

follows directly from the abstract notion of responsibility and the lexical meaning of the

main verb. In particular, Parkas analyses the class of verbs which she calls responsibility

(RESP)-inducing verbs and which includes convince, persuade, ask, force order, help,

encourage, teU, advise, and promise (p. 33). Rer central claim is that the "preferred

analysis" (p. 33) for this type of verbs in terms of controller assignment derives from the

Principle of Controller Choice (PCC). According to this principle, the choice of controller

is determined by the responsibility relation, a two-place relation where an individual i is

responsible for bringing about the complement's event (a situation s); this individual is

called the 'initiator', and is thus the controller, because "the realization of s crucially

depends on i" (p. 36). For instance, in the example below, Jim is the controller, as he is the

one responsible for the realization of the complement' s event:

(72) John persuaded Jim to write a letter. (p. 45)

The rationale behind this is that "if x persuades / convinces / forces / urges / requires y to

VP y is responsible for bringing about a situation" (p. 41). The same principle (PCC) can

also be applied to the verb promise:

(73) John promised Jim to write a letter. (p. 45)

28

Contrary to example (72), in this case it is the subject John which is the controller as he is

the one responsible for writing a letter. Moreover, this shows that the verb promise is not

considered as an exception in her approach.

As Farkas points out, within the class of RESP-inducing verbs there are however

sorne ambiguous cases as to controller choice. For instance, she claims that under certain

circumstances, example (84) is considered as ambiguous by sorne speakers of English:

(74) The pupil asked the teacher to leave early. (p. 47)

There are two possible readings here, the first one being when the subject the pupil is

selected as the controller, and the second one being when it is the teacher who fulfils that

role. The second interpretation would normally be the one selected by the PCC, which

F arkas caUs the unmarked case. T 0 account for the first reading which is referred to as the

rnarked case, she proposes the Marked Controller Choice Principle(MCC). This principle

govems the selection of the participant whose actions are determined by the initiator as the

controller. Thus, in the second reading of (74) above, the teacher is the controller because

hislher actions are determined by the pupil. The verb ask therefore allows either the PCC

and the MCC to determine its controller. The default choice however remains PCC, with

Mee acting only as a marked option. According to Farkas, the conditions under which this

choice is allowed would be stated in the lexical entry ofthose verbs which allow MCC.

Although Farkas' work is interesting because of its focus on the maIn verb's

semantics, it remains a very specific and limited study. Her analysis considers only

responsibility-inducing verbs, leaving out others like think, imagine, etc. which do not

appear to possess this characteristic. The categorization of verbs also appears to be

problematic, as there are no clear indications as ta how ta discriminate between RESP

inducing verbs and non-RESP-inducing verbs. This is sirnply specified in their lexicon.

Finally, her recourse to marked cases is also questionable; Mec looks suspiciously like a

catch-aH for cases of control relations that do not fit with the main theory.

l '

1

29

Building on work such as that of Jackendoff (1972), Chierchia (1989) puts forth a

formaI theory of thematic ' raIes ta explain control with the gerund-participle and the

infinitive. He provides definitions for the four main 9-roles, i.e agent, theme, goal and

source:

For any eventuality fi:

a. Ag (/3) = Xi, for that unique Xi = fi whose action causes fi (or, if you prefer, the event classified as fi) ta occur. If there is no such Xi, Ag (fJ) is undefined.

b. Th (fJ) = Xi, for that unique Xi = fi such that whenever fi occurs, Xi moves, changes possession or is acted upon by Ag (/3). If there is no such Xi, Th(fJ) is undefined.

c. Go (j3) = Xi, for that unique Xi = fi such that whenever fi occurs, Th (j3) moves towards Xi. Ifthere is no such Xi, Go(fJ) is undefined.

d. Sa (fJ) = Xi, for that unique Xi = fi such 'that whenever fi occurs Th (/3) moves from fi Xi· If there is no such Xi, Sa (/3) is undefined. (p. 139)

Thematic raIes are defined in terms of the entailments associated with eventualities.

Chierchia proposes that thematic raIes are organized in a hierarchy, which uses the notion

of "highest available O-role" (p. 163):

Theme > Goal> Agent> Source> ...

In control structures the controller is determined by this hierarchy: "if the basic relation r

has a theme-argument, then Th will be the value of (J. Otherwise, it will be the next higher

thematic raIe, and so on" (p. 144). In example (75) below, since Mary is the theme, she is

identified as the controller:

(75) John forces Mary to win.

However, since no theme and agent is present in the next example, it is the goal (Mary)

which is understood as the controller:

(76) John recommended reading War and Peace to Mary.

30

Chierchia's approach leaves a certain number of occurrences unexplained however,

as it allows for marked and unmarked cases. Interestingly, the relatively small class of

verbs behaving like promise is categorized as unmarked, selecting the source as controller.

However, the idea of "source" does not seem applicable to promise and its controller.

Moreover, ev en if one concedes that the subject of promise is to be taken as the source, its

object would seem to fit t4e a-role of goal; foUowing Chiechia's hierarchy, this object

should then be the controller of promise, which is not the case. On the other hand, the large

class of verbs like require, order, ask, and tell is treated as marked, choosing the goal

instead of the source as their controUers. A theory which cannot deal with exceptions

should be revised, especially if what is treated as an exception is a frequent phenomenon.

A more comprehensive semantic approach is proposed by Culicover & Jackendoff

(2005), who seek an explanation of control at the level of "conceptual structure" rather than

syntactic structure. Both thematic roles and the meaning of the main verb are key elements

in their explanation. As infinitival and gerundial complements are mostly cases of what the

authors call ' unique control', our discussion will focus on that here. Instead of the

traditional distinction between obligatory and non-obligatory control, the authors introduce

a three-way distinction: free, nearly free, and unique control. Free control occurs when

there is no restriction on the pos~ibility of controUers, e.g. Amy thinks that dancing with

Dan intrigues Tom. Nearly free control is the case when the range of possible controUers is

more limited, e.g. John talked to Sarah about taking befter care of himself / herself /

themselves /oneself. Finally, unique control (a.k.a obligatory control) occurs when there is

only one target that can be selected as controUer, even ifthere are two possible targets as in

Sally persuaded Ben to take better care of himself (pp. 422-425). Oruy actional

complements wiU be considered, as they are the core of Culicover and Jackendoff's

analysis. A distinction is made between actional and situational complements, actional

referring to complements expressing voluntary actions, and situational applying to

complements expressing situations (which also include actions) (p. 428). The term situation

is used "for any sort of state or event" (p. 427), while the term action applies to a "special

subclass of situation, detectableby the test What X did was" (p. 427).

31

Culicover & Jackendoff propose a Unique Control of Actional Complements

Hypothesis (UCAC) which claims the foUowing: "Infmitival and gerundive complements

that are selected by their head to be of the semantic type V oluntary Action have unique

control. The unique controUer is the character to which the ,head assigns the role of actor for

that action whatever it syntactic position"(p. 427). The standard cases of the verbs persuade

and promise are discussed according to this hypothesis:

(77) John promised Susan to take care ofhimself.

(78) John persuaded Susan to take care of herself.

In example (77) Jàhn is the controller, while in (78) it is Susan who plays this role. The

difference in controUer choice is attributed by the authors to the meaning of the predicates.

With promise, the complement is controUed by "the giver/maker of the promise, wherever

that character may be located in the syntax" (p. 434), as this giver/maker is the actor of the

action denoted by the complement. With persuade, the controUer is the person or the entity

who is persuaded to do what is denoted by the complement.

Culicover & Jackendoff also attenipt to formalize their approach, as they claim that

control relations with actional complements can be accounted for by a control equation.

Indeed, each predicate or matrix verb includes as part of its meaning an equation dictating

the binding of the complement ta one of its other arguments. Thus, any verb containing the

predicate intend as part of its meaning will have the foUowing control equation:

XU INTEND [a ACT] (p. 445)

Following this equation, any verb of this class wiU see its 'intender' be assigned the role of

actor i.e. controUer.

There are however sorne cases of control that are more difficult ta account for in

terms of Culicover & Jackendoffs approach, in particular "two cases in which the

designated character does not end up as controller" (pp. 451-452). In order to solve this

32

problem, the authors propose a mechanism called coercion, which is in fact "a

conventionalized omission of semantic material in syntactic expression" (p. 453). The fIfst

type of coercion posited is 'bring about' coercion, whose workings can be seen through

examples (79) and (80):

(79) Hillary plans for the cat to be fed.

(80) Hillary plans to bring il about that the cat be fed. (p. 452)

Thus, 'bring about' coercion serves to preserve the control condition dictated by the UCAC

hypothesis, that is that the intention must be executed by the intender, i.e. Hillary, which

was apparently not the case in (79). The second type of coercion, 'someone allow'

coercion, is involved to solve the problem posed by verbs like ask, pray and plead:

(81) John asked/begged/pleaded to take care ofhimself.

(82) John asked someone to bring it about that he take care ofhimself. (p. 454)

As pointed by Culicover & Jackendoff, these verbs select the source of the speech act as

controller when the addressee is implicit. 'Someone allow' coercion implies that the

implicit addressee (someone) controis the action, as predicted for the larger class of verbs

of communication of which verbs of request are a sub-class. The very notion of coercion

itself deserves criticism however: postulating an element which is not physically observable

to account for 'difficuIt' examples is not the best solution. Looking at what is observable is

a far preferable approach from a scientific point of view. Another important question that

Cullicover & Jackendoff do not address concems the conditions goveming the application

of coercion: it seems to be simply a means ofplugging up the holes in their theory.

In sum, all three of the semantic approaches discussed above can be criticized for

being incomplete, as all three suffer from a lack of definition of the complement' s semantic

content. Moreover, none of them considers the relation between the complement and the

main verb, the complement's syntactic function. Finally, although Chierchia (1989) and

Culicover & Jackendoff (2005) claim that their respective approach is applicable to both

- --- ----------------------~

33

the gerund-participle and the infinitive, they do not deal adequately with the gerund

participle: they offer very little explanation and examples of how their hypotheses apply to

the cases where a gerund-participle acts as complement of a matrix verb. As to Farkas

(1988), she does not even consider the problem posed by the gerund-participle used as

complement. The approach we will be working with will atternpt to explain the

phenornenon of control both with the to-infinitive and the gerund-partlciple. Our approach

to eontrol is related to that of Culicover & Jackendoff (2005) in sorne ways. However,

while these authors recognize the role played by the meaning of the rnatrix verb, there is no

reference to the meaning of to or of the infinitive, the meaning of the -ing, or to the

function of the complement itself in the sentence. Consequently, their approach works only

with a part of the puzzle, since these elements are not taken into account in their analysis.

As will be outlined in Chapter Two, our approach to control will consider these elements as

involved in the production of control readings with the to-infinitive and the gerund

participle complements.

1.4 SUMMARY

We saw in this chapter that various approaches have been proposed to deal with the

to-infinitive and the gerund-participle complements. However, despite the great variety of

solutions submitted, none can account for the diversity of cases found in real usage. More

importantly, these approaches are unable to explain the various expressive effects and the

principles underlying the use of 'main verb + complement' structures with the infinitive

and the -ing as complements of verbs of risk. Attempting to define the distinction between

the two complements in terros of abstract pre-deterroined categories such as 'potential vs.

actual', 'referring vs. non-referring', or 'factive vs. non-factive' simply does not work. The

cognitive approach, although interesting, overlooks crucial semantic elements which

contribute to the overall meaning of the constructions under study here.

In Chapter Two, we will present the theoretical framework used in our study of

verbs of risk. Hopefully, this will answer many of the questions raised by this survey of the

literature on verbal complementation with the to-infinitive and the gerund-participle.

- - - - - _ ._-----'---- ---- -

34

CHAPTER Two: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

2.1 BASIC ASSUMPTIONS

HA properly linguistic methodology should involve a careful observation of the linguistic signs which constitute one 's object of study. This means starting with the linguistic sign as the basis for defining linguistic categories, not with notions developed in other fields which ma/œ no reference to the signe "

(Duffley 2006b: 305)

The present study is inspired by certain principles of both Cognitive Linguistics and

the Psychomechanics of Language. In particular, we adopt Cognitive Grammar's postulate

that "grammar and meaning are indissociable" (Langacker 2000: 1). For this theory,

according to which . language is best regarded as an integral part of cognition, grammar is

inherently meaningful: "aIl grammatical elements are reasonably attrihuted sorne kind of

semantic import" (Hamawand 2002: 30). For instance, complementizers are considered as

meaningful elements in a construction (cf. Hamawand 2002), a stance which clashes with

the estahlished tradition which regards sorne of them as empty or devoid of semantic

signification. As in Cognitive Grammar, the speaker' s ability to conceptualise situations in

a variety of ways is also given great importance in our approach (cf. Langacker 1991: 294).

Unlike formaI semantics, where meaning is equated with truth conditions, Cognitive

Grammar identifies meaning with conceptualisation: "CG embraces a subjectivist view of

meaning in that the meaning of an expression invoives the way the conceptualiser chooses

to think about it and represent it, as weIl as the properties inherent to the scene

conceptualised" (Hamawand 2002: 37). The speaker and his interaction with the world thus

have a major role to play in language. Moreover, .Cognitive Grammar advocates that

35

humans' cognitive ability for abstraction or schematization gives rise to the ability to

construe a situation with varying degrees of specificity and details (Langacker 2000: 2). As

this seems to be particularly relevant to an explanation of verbal complementation in

English, it will be taken into consideration in our analysis.

We will also draw on notions from Gustave Guillaume's general theory of language

called the Psychomechanics of Language. Psychomechanics completes the view of

language proposed by Cognitive Grammar by taking into account the fact that human

language has two modes of existence, tongue and discourse. Tongue (what Guillaume

called langue) can be described as a set of mental programs that a speaker has available in

his subconscious, and which provides a means for the speaker to represent his experience; it

is "the part of language that resides permanently in the preconscious mind" (Hirtle 2007:

87). In fact, tongue is "the prior conditioning factor that gives rise to words and sentences

in the présent of speech while the speaker carries out an act of language" (p. 87). On the

other hand, discourse (what Guillaume called discours in French) is the final product of an

act of language, namely actual language consisting of words and sentences: "discourse is

the result of in~ennittent acts of constructing words and sentences" (p. 12). In other words,

tongue is a potential, language as yet to be realized, while discourse is an actualization, that

is language that has been realized.

Accordingly, in Psychomechanics meamng is thought to exist in two different

states: as potential meaning (a.k.a. systemic meaning) and as actual or actualized meaning

(a.k.a contextual meaning). Potential meaning is "a meaning which, prior to any contextual

meaning in discourse, exists in the mind even though we cannot become aware of it

directly" (Guillaume 1984: 82); it is meaning in its initial state. According to Guillaume,

"each systemic meaning makes possible a certain range of contextual ,meanings in

discourse" (p. 81). Systemic meaning thus exists in tongue as a potential for contextual

meaning, which is meaning in its realized state. So, aU the different expressive effects a

form can have in discourse are explained by the single potential meaning existing in the

preconscious mind of the speaker.

--------------------------------- --

36

This view of meaning provides an interesting explanation of polysemy. Both

pragmatic elements pertaining to the utterance situation and linguistic elements having to

do with the interactions and relations between the meaning of the words used in an

utterance conspire with the potential meaning of a form in order to produce the resultant

observable message in discourse. The failure to distinguish between the potential and actual

levels of language leads to a basic methodological problem which we avoid here: as we saw

in our discussion of other approaches to complementation in Chapter One, confusion often

results from taking the actual uses of a form in discourse to be its potential meaning in

tongue.

With respect to syntax, both Cognitive Grammar and the Psychomechanics of

Language recognize that each grammatical unit contributes to the meaning of a sentence. In

Cognitive Grammar, semantic structure looms large and conditions in many ways the

syntactic structure: "the expectation rather, is that the syntactic (and morphological) facts of

a language will be motivated by semantic aspects" (Taylor 2002: 29). The notion of

semantic compatibility, which advocates a close correspondence between the various

elements of a construction, is also important. Every grammatical unit is believed to have a

meaning of its own which contributes to the meaning of a whole, and consequently, "the

meaning of a construction is a compositional function of the meanings of its internaI parts"

(Hamawand 2002: 12). For Psychomechanics, which is primarily a word-based theory,

syntax depends on the semantics of individual word units. More precisely, "syntax is not

àutonomous but conditioned by, among other things, the lexical and grammatical meanings

of the words that go together to make up the sentence" (Duffley 1992: 6). Thus, an

understanding of the nature of words and their meaning is necessary before undertaking the

task of looking at the nature of a construction or sentence. Accordingly, we shaH try to

identify as precisely as possible the contribution of each word and morpheme to the

meaning of the examples analysed in our study. Such a view seems essential to anyattempt

at explaining the contrast between 'the use of the infinitive and the gerundive complements

with verbs expressing the idea of risk.

37

2.2 PARAMETERS USED

Based on the work of Duffley (2000; 2006a), our analysis will be guided by three

explanatory parameters: 1) the meaning of the verbal complement, 2) the function of the

complement with respect to the main verb, and 3) the lexical meaning of the main verb.

Except for the meaning of verbs of risk where a lexical analysis will have to be conducted,

we adopt the hypotheses proposed by Duffley (2000; 2006a) for the parameters above.

2.2.1 The Meaning of the Gerund-Participle

As for the grammatical or potential meamng of the gerund-participle, Duffley

(2006a) proposes that it simply corresponds to the notion of interiority (p.19). This meaning

can be actualized in two different ways in discourse. The first corresponds to the expressive

effect which is most often observed in the progressive construction, that is be + -ing. In a

sentence such as (83) below there is an impression of imperfectivity, the subject being

situated between the beginning and the end of eating a chocolate bar:

(83) She is eating a chocolate bar (p. 151).

Here, the event-originator is located at a specific point within the interiority of the event

denoted by the -ing, thus giving "the impression of an event divided into an accomplished

and a yet-to-be accompli shed portion" (p. 152-153). As we saw in Chapter One, this -

particular instantiation of the gerund-participle in discourse is taken for its basic meaning

by most grammarians.

However, there is a second way in which the gerund-participle's meaning can be

realized in discourse, and this type of use is of more relevance to us for the cases we have at

hand with verbal complementation. In contrast to the impression seen in the example

above, in a sentence like (84) below, the -ing evokes the event it denotes as a whole:

38

(84) 1 remember telling you that 1 wanted nothing more to do with you. (BNC: JXV 2211)

This holistic effect is due to the fact that the realizer of the event denoted by the -ing is not

located at any particular point within the latter: "the totality of the interiority is profiled,

which amounts to evoking the event itself as a sort of abstract substance whose nature is

depicted by the gerund-participle's lexical content" (Duffley 2006a: 20). The same type of

expressive effect can be seen in example (85):

(85) We discussed moving into a new house in Lawrenceville. (lascene.blogspot.com/2006 _ 09 _ 01_ archive.html)

Obviously, the activity of moving is se en as a holistic entity here also; it is the totality of

moving which is profiled, not just a portion of it. Following the traditional terminology, this

type of expressive effect is generally associated with the use of the -ing as a gerund.

One can see from this brief expose that the effect produced by the use of the -ing in

the progressive construction is only one of its various actual meanings. To account for both

uses in discourse, a more general pre-conscious potential meaning like that of interiority

needs to be postulated for the gerund-participle.

2.2.2 The Function of the Gerund-Participle Complement

ln terms of the function played by the . gerund-participle complement in the

construction under study here, Duffley (2000) proposes that the gerund-participle is simply

the direct object of the main verb, a function which is firstand foremost defined

semantically as 'that which is [verb]ed' in the event expressed by the verb which it is the

direct object" (p. 226). So, in (86) below, losing is that which is hated:

(86) She hated losing at the best of times but this was the worst. (BNC: BP7 522)

The same also goes for example (84) seen previously; the semantic role played by the -ing

there is to identify what is remembered.

39

In addition to this semantic criterion for identifying direct objects, certain syntactic

tests provide further supporting evidence. First of aH, active/passive correspondences like

that between sentence (87) and (88) below is one possibility for confmning the

identification of a direct object:

(87) He had tried reading isolated pages. (BNC: HR8 1572)

(88) Reading isolated pages had been tried.

The -ing being the direct object of the main verb in the active sentence, in (88) it

predictably occupies the subject position in the passive construction. In addition, anaphoric

reference to the direct object is also possible by means of a pronoun:

(89) He had tried itlthat.

Finally, pseudo-cleft constructions, which place communicative focus on the entity referred

to by the direct obje,ct, can usually be ~onstructed:

(90) Reading isolated pages is what he had tried.

(91) What he had tried was reading isolated pages.

The conjunction of these criteria indicates that the gerund-participle has the function

of a direct object when complementing a matrix verbe However, these tests cannot be

applied mechanically to identify the direct object of a sentence. The passive transformation

is a case in point, because the meanings of certain verbs do not square weIl with

passivization. For instance, as (93) below shows, sentence (92) can hardly be passivized

without awkwardness:

(92) He lacksmotivation.

(93) * Motivation is lacked by him.

40

Therefore, although these tests are useful, following Duffley (2006a) we will take the

semantic role of 'that which is [verb ]ed' as the fundamental criterion for identifying a direct

object in this study.

2.2.3 The Semantic Effect of the Gerund-Participle as Complement

The relation in time between the events expressed by the complement and the

matrix verb is one semantic effect which requires explanation. As se en in Chapter One, the

gerund-participle is in fact indifferent as regards temporality, since, depending on the

context in which it is used, it can express something which is prior, contemporaneous or

subsequent with respect to the event expressed by the main verb:

(94) 1 remember digging for what seemed like hours to lift those bulbs. (BNC: ACY 185)

(95) He tried reading Advanced Physical Dynamics and Introverted Equations for the 3-D Aeronautical Practice. (BNC: AMB 1320)

(96) 1 am contemplating abandoning my quest for silver to go for gold. (BNC: CH72664)

Actually, the relation of a direct object to its verb is of a non-temporal nature by itself; the

function of the direct object is simply to, link one of the elements of the sentence to the

main verb's event as 'that which is [verb]ed'. In the sentences above, the -ing thus denotes

that which is remembered, tried, or contemplated. The following examples confirm the fact

that a noun direct object has no particular temporal relation with the event represented by

the main verb:

(97) 1 remember your visit. (BNC: H8T 2058)

(98) He tried the back door but it was firmly bolted. (BNC: BPD 1929)

(99) He is contemplating postgraduate studies. (BNe: ARX 1243)

As Duffley (2006a) proposes, the explanation of any temporal or 'tense' effects with

the gerund-participle lies in the fact that "any temporal relation between the events

41

expressed by the -ing and the main verb is simply a logical implication based on the latter' s

lexical meaning" (p. 37). For instance, an event which is remembered as in (94) had to

happen before the actual act of remembering. In (95), there is a relation of simultaneity

because the act of trying necessarily occurs at the same time than the action which is tried;

an event is obviously tried . only during its realization. Finally, an event which is

contemplated as in (96) is obligatorily something which has not happened yet. In fact, since

the gerund-participle is of a non-temporal nature, any temporal implication derives from the

main verb; if its lexical meaning implies sorne relation in time with its object, then sorne

temporal effect will be produced in correlation with the -ing complement. However, this

does not occur with aIl verbs: there are a good number of cases where the -ing does not

stand in any kind of temporal relation with the main verb:

(100) His job includes looking after under-21 teams. (BNC: HAE 2670)

(101) They value being loved more than being served. (www.mhp.com.au/LO VE _ VS_Possessive _ RelationshipsPDF. pd±)

(102) 1 haven't noticed any shortening of the nylons' lifetime at all using this method and it sure beats washing them by hand! ( www.stretcher.comlstories/990 51 7 a.cfm)

In these examples, it is totally irrelevant whether the complement event has already been

accompli shed or not. In (101), for instance, the event represented by the gerund-participle is

simply represented as being valued.

Control relations between the main verb and the gerund-participle can also be

explained by the latter' s meaning and its furiction within the construction. Duffley (2006a:

47) demonstrates that control with the gerund-participle can be understood by looking at

the logic of the interaction of the same three parameters which were used above to explain

temporal effects: the lexeme of the matrix, the grammatical representation of the event

provided by the -ing, and the latter' s function with respect to the matrix. Thus in (94), (95), .

and (96) above, an event which is remembered, tried or contemplated will normally be

understood as implying subject control: for instance, one generally contemplates actions or

things that he plans to do himself.

- - - - ----- - ------~

(104):

42

The same parameters can also explain non-controlled interpretations as in (103) and

(103) At one board meeting she proposed introducing padded coat hangers. (BNC: GU9 731)

(104) He recommended opening the window.

Normally, when one recommends or proposes something, the recommendation or proposaI

is understood to be carried out by someone else. There is no need to use formaI equations

or abstract entities like PRO to explain the phenomenon of control with the gerund

participle as complement; a semantic explanation taking into consideration the elements

present in the sentence or the 'discourse is sufficient to account for these effects.

2.2.4 The Meaning of the to-infinitive

With regards to the to-infinitive meaning, Duffley' s hypothesis is based on the

recognition of the two elements composing it, i.e. to and the bare stem or infinitive, both of

which are treated as separate meanings. The idea that to has a meaning in , this use is

contrary to the general view that this element is meaningless (e.g. Chomsky 1957; Lehrer

1987; Langacker 1991; Fischer 2003). However, if this were true, there should be no

difference in meaning between (105) and (106), as pointed out by Duffley (2006a: 24):

(105) She had a machine correct the tests.

(106) She had a machine to correct the test.

Duffley postulates instead that the potential meaning of to is that of a movement potentially

leading ta a point (1992: 17-20). This very general meaning can be applied to various

domains, notably that of space such as in (107) below:

(107) He went to America and made a fortune. (BNC: CDY 2312)

43

This is the classic use of to where it denotes a physical movement from one point in space

to another. However, this should not be taken for the basic meaning of to, as it is only one

of its various uses in discourse. In the complement constructions analysed in this study, to 's

do main of application is generally that of time.

In the to + infinitive construction, the bare stem acts as the end-point of the

movement signified by to (Duffley 2006a: 26). Thus, in (108) below the infinitive is seen as

the result of the process denoted by the matrix verb:

(108) 1 persuaded Dave to open the door (p. 27)

As to the potential meanlng of the bare stem itself, Duffley agrees with Langacker

(1991 :444) in seeing a parallel between it and the simple form: "both forms evoke a full

instantiation, be it of an action or a state, in the time stretch corresponding to the immediatè

scope of predication, the difference between them being that in the case of the infinitive this

instantiation is not grounded by means of tense or pers on" (Duffley 2006a: 30). The

infinitive is not tied down to any temporal period, which aIlows it to represent things in the

abstract and makes it compatible with any adverbial time, as the examples below with

modal auxiliaries show:

(109) She could sing classical music quite weIl, and play the piano, but it was the Greek folk-tunes 1 remember best. (BNC: G 13 1448)

(110) She must be eight and a haif. (BNC: KCP 3853)

(111) If everything continues to go weIl, she will stay for no more than se ven days. (BNC: CEN 502)

The bare infinitive is simply a more abstract version of the simple form of the verb:

like the latter it simply situates an event in time as a holistic entity whose event time

contains aIl of what is involved in the verb's lexical content (Hirtle 1988). This perfective

view of the realization of the event can be represented in two different ways, depending on

whether the event is action-like or state-like. With action-like events, on the one hand,

locating the event in time necessitates conceiving the full actualization of the event. This

44

me ans that the event evoked by the simple form is seen as unfolding in time from its

beginning to its end, thus·producin.g a complete image of the event, as se en in (112):

(112) The ferry crossed the channel.

(113) The ferry was crossing the channel.

A comparison with the present progressive highlights the meaning of the simple forme

Contrary to (112), where the crossing of the ferry is pictured as complete from beginning to

end with the ferry having made it to the other side of the channel, example (113) presents a

partial view of the crossing. In the case of state-like events, the event represented by the

simple form actualizes its full meaning at each instant of its existence:

(114) The lake was cold this moming.

In (114), all ofwhat is involved in the idea of the lake being cold is fully present injust one

instant of its duration. The bare infinitive will be treated here as simply representing the full

actualization of its lexical content like the simple fonu, but without any specification of

ordinal person or temporal location.

2.2.5 The Function of the to-infinitive as Complement

It should now be clear that what is generally called an 'infinitive' or a 'to-infinitive'

is actually a two-word sequence. As mentioned already, the relation between to and the

bare , stem is quite straightforward: the infinitive simply acts as the end-point of the

movement denoted by to.

In terms of the function of the to-infinitive phrase with respect to the main verb,

Duffley (2000) demonstrates that, in most of the cases of the type und~r study here, it is a

prepositional 'phrase acting as an adverbial goal or result specifier with respect to the main

verb (p. 231). Thus, in a sentence like (115) below, the bare stem expresses the final goal

towards which the event expressed by the main verb Îs oriented:

45

(115) Humiliated, 1 decided to fetch the manager. (BNC: A6C 1303)

One piece of evidence for this claim is the fact that the to-infinitive complement in (115)

cannot be replaced by the pronouns that/ if, as would be the case if the infmitive had a direct

obj ect function:

(116) * Humiliated, 1 decided thatlit.

(117) 1 decided to.

As (117) shows, it would be more appropriate to evoke the to-infinitive phrase

anaphorically by means of to. This does not mean that a to-infinitive does not have the

capacity of being a direct object; however, when it acts as such, anaphoric reference to it is

possible by means of a pronoun:

(118) 1 consider not to participate a bad idea.

(119) 1 consider not to a bad idea.

(120) 1 consider that a bad idea. (Duffley 2006a: 41)

Further evidence suggesting that the to-infinitive complement is not a direct object

in most of its complement uses is provided by the fact that pseudo-cleft constructions are

not possible:

(121) The manager was who 1 called.

(122) * Fetch the manager was what 1 decided to.

Moreover, active/passive correspondence is generally not a possibility either:

(123) He tried to discourage her in every way. (BNC: AC3 1482)

(124) * To discourage her was tried in every way.

46

Verbs like hope are also interesting in tbis respect, as they do not take a direct o.bject, but

can be complemented by an infinitive:

(125) 1 hope to stay here for a long time. (BNC: CEP 10501)

(126) *1 hope a long stay in your beautiful city.

2.2.6 The Semantic Effect of the to-infinitive as Complement

The set of parameters set out above can also be used to explain the temporal effects

found with the to-infinitive as verbal complement. It was noted in Chapter One that it is

commonly observed that the to-infinitive evokes its event as potential (e.g Bolinger 1968;

Dixon 1992; 1995) or as having "a clear future orientation" (Wierzbicka 1988) with respect

to the main verb. This can be seen in (127) below:

(127) She wanted ta tell you so many things, but you were tao bus y talking to listen.(BNC: G1M 2652)

The basic meaning of the preposition to explains the expression of this temporal relation of

subsequence with the to-infinitive construction: the meaning of to being that of a movement

potentially leading to a point, the infinitive is seen as the goal or result of the event

represented by the main verb. In (127), the infinitive's event represents the goal of a desire

or 'wanting'; consequently, because ofthis notion of a targeted goal, the infmitive's event

is felt to be posterior to the main verb' s event. This can be illustrated by the following

diagrarn:

: --

BEFOREPOSITION

to ------------------------------------------~

wanted

AFTERPOSITION

tell

FIGURE 1: INFINITIVE EVENT EVOKED AS NON-REALIZED

47

In this type of use, the matrix's event and that of the to-infinitive stand in a before/after

position in time. Moreover, the infinitive event in (129) is evoked as non-realized, as the

dotted line in the diagram indicates.

The temporal impression of futurity is not observed in aIl cases however: as pointed

out in section 1.2.2, the to-infinitive can sometimes evoke an accomplished event, as in

(128) and (129):

(128) The next night he remembered to pick up a video on the way back from work. (BNC: AOR 989)

(129) She managed to edge herself out of her corner, away from Ivan, back into the CUITent. (BNC: FBO 778)

In these examples, the movement signified by to is represented as totally carried out, giving

the impression of a result:

BEF OREPOSITION

remembered

to

AFTERPOSITION

pickup

FIGURE 2: INFINITIVE EVENT EVOKED AS ACTUALLY REALIZED

48

Nonetheless, for both examples (128) and (129), there is still a before/after relationship

between the main verb and the event represented by the infinitive. For instance, in (128),

the remembering logically needed to occur before the subject could carry out the

infinitive's event, being conceived as that which led to the actualization of the picking up.

It should be pointed out that the notions of potentiality and futurity do not apply to

examples (128) and (129) because the events represented by the infinitive have been

actualized; for this reason, the temporal effect se en with the use of the to-infinitive is best

called subsequence rather than futurity. The to-infinitive can thus give rise to two main

types of temporal impression in discourse: subsequent potentiality (e.g. She wanted to tell

you) and subsequent actualization (e.g. He remembered to pick up a video).

The three parameters detailed above for the to-infinitive provide an adequate basis

for the control effects observed with this phrase. When the to-infinitive is used as a

complement in the function of an adverbial goal specifier, it always implies a coreferential

control reading, both with verbs involving subsequent potentiality (e.g. want, try, intend)

and subsequent actualization (e.g. remember, manage, begin) (Duffley 2006a):

(130) One day soon she intended to pay it aIl back, with interest. (BNe: JY3 569)

(131) He began to pray silently to himself. (BNe: BIX 1453)

49

The key to the explanation of this fact is the function of the to-infinitive in the sentence: as

an adverbial goal or result specifier, the prepositional to specifies the relation existing

between the infinitive and the matrix. Thus in (130) intend implies a movement towards the

goal represented by the infinitive, and .to represents the infInitive payas the term to which

this movement leads. Accordingly, the realizer of the intention is logically understood to be

coreferential to that of the paying. The notion of movement is already implicit in the lexical

meaning of the verb intend: intend involves a desire to move towards the achievement of

the infinitive's event, and unless specified otherwise, the intender is the prospective realizer

of this event. Similarly, in (131), to profiles the movement initiated by the subject of the

main verb towards a result, that of praying. Necessarily, the realizer of the praying is the

same as the one who decided to initiate it.

2.3SUMMARY

In this chapter, we have outlined our main theoretical assumptions, which derive

from both Cognitive Grammar and the Psychomechanics of Language. More precisely, our

usage-based approach is based on the hypotheses proposed by Duffley to explain verbal

complementation with the infinitive and the gerund-participle. We defined the meaning and

the function of both forms. A general explanation of the semantic effects produced by the

use of these complements in discourse was also provided and illustrated with examples.

The three explanatory parameters were shown to provide explanations for the gerund

participle' s indifference to both temporality and control. These parameters also allowed us

to perceive the reasons behind the to-infinitive's constant subsequent interpretation and

coreferential control reading.

These hypotheses have already been applied successfully to explain the expressive

effects of various semantic types of verbs. In Duffley (2006a), verbs of effort, verbs of

positive and negative recall, verbs of liking and the so-called aspectual verbs are discussed.

In addition, these hypotheses have also been tested on verbs of fear (Fisher 2007), verbs of

negative attitude (Labbé 2002), and the verbs intend, mean, propose and their synonyms

50

(Duffley & Joubert 1999). Our study will thus be a further opportunity to test Duffley' s

hypotheses and explanations by confronting them with the facts of usage provided by the

verbs of risk.

CHAPTER THREE: DATA ANALYSIS

3.1 INTRODUCTION

51

"Language is li/œ shot silk; so much depends on the angle at which if is he Id. "

Jofin Powfes

Having laid out our theoretical foundations in Chapter Two, the present chapter will

investigate further verbal complementation with verbs of risk, considering in particular

temporal and control relationships. Our corpus is composed of examples containing verbs

of risk construed with a gerund-participle or a to-infinitive with a sufficient context, which

obviously varies for each example, in order to allow a proper understanding and

explanation of the various uses of these verbs. In total, almost 1 500 examples have been

examined. Our corpus is composed of attested data from present-day written English, with

a handful of examples from the 19th century. The majority of examples constituting it were

obtained from the following sources: the British National Corpus (BNC), the Brown

University Corpus (BROWN), and the Lancaster-Oslo / Bergen Corpus (LOB). When the

number of examples from these three sources was insufficient for a specifie verb, a search

was conducted on Internet. Most of the Internet examples were accessed through the

Canadian Index for Periodicals (CPLQ), a data bank containing articles from more than 700

newspapers and magazines from Canada and other English-speaking countries. A few

examples coUected personally in books and dictionaries were also added. The variety of

sources for our corpus provided for a fair representation of both English and American

usage, including Canadian usage, with a small output from Australian and New Zealand

English contributed mostly by Internet examples.

L-_ ___ ___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ -- - - -

52

In this chapter, we will analyse the data collected for each verb under investigation.

The lexical meaning of the verb will first be discussed, in relation with a description of

usage in our corpus. Temporal and control effects will then be examined. The role of the

complement used in the constructions found in the corpus will also be determined. Finally,

an attempt at explaining the temporal and control effect will be made. Before we proceed to

the analysis of the corpus data, a brief note on selecting pertinent verbs of risk will be

made.

3.2 A NOTE ON SELECTING VERBS OF RISK

Setting the limits as to what will be considered for the purposes of this study a verb

of risk and what will not is not a black-and-white affair. Although humans excel at

categorizing, categories in language are flexible and not always clear-cut. Jackendoff

rightly notes that "fuzziness is an inescapable characteristic of the concepts that language

expresses" (2004: 125). Along the same lines, Langacker states that "linguistic

relationships are not invariably all-or-nothing affairs, nor are linguistic categories always

sharply defined and never fuzzy around the edges" (2004: 131). Although there is no

semantic field of 'verbs of risk' roped off from other verbs, it is possible to group verbs

together according to their core meaning or sorne semantic element they share. Thus verbs

like love, like, enjoy,fancy, and desire can be grouped together as verbs of liking, for they

share a common semantic element.

The concept of risk and the word itself have greatly evolved over the last few

centuries. Most analysts link the emergence of this notion with maritime ventures in the

pre-modern period (Lupton 1999). As mentioned in 1.1, the era of modernity has brought

changes in our industrialized world which have led to an increase in the use of the term

risk. In the Oxford Advanced Learner 's Dictionary, the core meaning of the noun risk is

defined as "the possibility of something bad happening at sorne time in the future; a

situation that could be dangerous or have a bad result" (p.1313). Although risk can have

------------ - - - ------- ---- - - - - - - - - - - - - --- - - --

------------ --------- --

53

slightly different senses in areas such as insurance, it is normally understood in these terms

in everyday language.

Three criteria, two sernantic and one constructional, were used to select verbs for

the purposes of our study. The first criterion for a verb to be considered a verb of risk is

that it includes in its meaning a reference to exposure to the possibility or chance of a bad,

unpleasant or undesired outcome. The second semantic criterion is that this verb can be

loosely paraphrased by the verb risk. For instance, face in (132) could be paraphrased by

risk, as in (133):

(132) He faces losing aIl his belongings.

(133) He risks losing all his belongings.

Obviously, as it is often the case with paraphrases and synonyms, subtleties in the message

conveyed are lost, but the essential semantic component remains. Verbs of risk do not seem

to be as tightly connected sernantically as verbs of liking (li/œ, love, enjoy, etc.), as they

seem to belong more to a pragmatic category than a semantic one. Each verb of risk

expresses a somewhat different shade of the core meaning. Sometimes, this is because the

ernphasis is put on something else than just the possibility of an unwanted consequence.

Dare is a case in point, as it carries the meaning of courage or boldness. Obviously, some

of the verbs studied here rnay have a few attestations for which it is impossible to substitute

the verb risk. We will not be too strict about this. Sometimes, other factors such as context

make paraphrasing awkward. Moreover, sorne of the verbs analysed in this study may have

sorne uses in which they can clearly be considered as verbs of risk, and other senses where

it is clear that the message expressed does not contain an element of risk. These will be

mentioned in each case for the sake of clarity and thoroughness.

The last criterion for selecting verbs of risk pertinent to our study is constructional:

as mentioned in 1.1, the verbs chosen aIl occur with the gerund-participle and/or the to

infinitive directly following the verbe Having clarified how verbs of risk have been selected

in this study, let us now plunge into the heart of our analysis.

54

3.3 THE VERB RISK


The verb risk is always construed with the gerund-participle in our corpus. In total,

we looked at about 400 examples, coming from LOB, BROWN and CPLQ, and including

150 examples from the BNC. When construed with an -ing the verb risk can have two

different senses l. The first has been characterized by the Oxford Advanced Learner 's

Dictionary as "to do something that may mean that you get into a situation which is

unpleasant for you" (p. 1313). This actual meaning, which is the most frequent one in our

corpus, is seen in the following six examples:

(134) A few people stayed loyal to the traditional beer, but they risked being scoffed at by their more fashionable friends. (BNC: B2V 53)

(135) 1 walk a tightrope; if inroads are made into my routine 1 risk overbalancing. (BNC: AEA 1194)

(136) It is possible to get cheaper tickets but you risk landing at 3am and then facing an hour or more coach joumey culminating in a vagrancy charge because all the hotels are shut. (BNC: BPE 197)

(137) Farmers are advised not to stop travellers and vehicles on the road or they risk committing a serious traffic offence. (BNC: K3K 637)

(138) Brian Mulroney fostered a "greed society" like that of the United States and was so pro-American he risked making Canada the 51st state, says Prime Minister Jean Chretien. (CPLQ: Globe & Mail)

(139) Inequality between men and women in sports has a long history--one going back at least 2,700 years to the ancient Olympie Games. Women were barred from taking part in or even attending the ancient Games, first held in 776 B.C. in Olympia, Greece. Any woman who dared to violate the law risked being thrown to her death from the steep cliffs of Mount Typaeum. (CPLQ: Current Events)

1 The term sense refers here to what Psychomechanics caUs actual, actualized or contextual meaning in opposition to potential meaning. As the potential meaning of a word resides in the unconscious mind and is therefore inaccessible to our consciousness, our analysis will center on actualized language, concentrating on the actual occurrences of language in discoUTse. For further explanations, cf. 2.1.

55

The second meaning of risk in discourse when followed directly by the gerund-participle

can be described as "to do something that you know is not really a good idea or may not

succeed" (Oxford Advanced Leamer's Dictionary: 1313). It is illustrated by the examples

below:

(140) She risked standing, poised to duck back under the slab of rock if she saw even the shadow of a movement. (BNC: F9X 604)

(141) Shuddering with fear and anticipation at the prospect of the weekend ahead, she risked opening her eyes again. (BNC: JXU 4108)

(142) 1 would never have risked travelling with a family in such a car. (BNC: AT3 2182)

(143) We were on a stretch 'of straight road, climbing up towards the Heights, and he risked taking his eyes from the road for a second to look fully at me. 1 couldn't read anything from his face. (LOB: P15 4)

(144) GAZA STRIP: Gaza Baptist Church used to draw hundreds of Palestinian worshipers to its two Sunday services. But on a recent Sunday in January, less than 1 o people risked attending the only evangelical church in the 25-mile coastal strip. (CPLQ: Christianity Today)

(145) Government agencies are seldom in the forefront when a new operating system cornes along, and that's g90d sense. The only time 1 risk installing brand-new software is when l'm being paid to evaluate it. (CPLQ: Government Computer News)

These two different actual meanings of the verb risk can also be looked at in terms

of Fillmore's 'frame semantics'. In their study of the RISK frame, Fillmore & Atkins

identify two possible categories or types of direct objects occurring with the verb risk when

followed by an -ing. The first is 'HARM, meaning that the gerund-participle object

corresponds to a "potential unwelcome development" (1992: 82). This type of use

correlates with the first sense of risk identified above in examples (134) to (139). Indeed, in

these examples, the subjects face being seoffed at, overbalaneing, landing al 3 am,

eommitting a serious traffle offenee, making Canada the 51st state, and being thrown to her

death from the steep eliffs of Mount Typaeum, which aIl represent possible harm. The

second category of -ing direct object is DEED, that is "the act that brings about a risky

situation" (p. 83). This corresponds to the second sense of risk displayed in examples (140)

56

to (145). In these, the subjects of the sentence perform a risky deed, viz. standing, opening

her eyes again, travelling with a family .in such a car, taking his eyes off the road, attending

the only evangelical church in the 25-mile coastal strip, and installing brand-new software.

These two categories of gerund-participle object proposed by Fillmore & Atkins for the

verb risk are clearly distinct in our corpus and represent two different actualized meanings

of the potential meaning of risk.2 The following examples are interesting in this regard:

(146) On the other hand, by refraining fro'm identifying himself he risked being bludgeoned or arrested. (BNC: AOU 2443)

(147) "We have repeatedly wamed people that ifthey assist burglars in disposing of stolen property, they risk being put out of business," said Mr Shatford. (BNC: CEN 1283)

(148) Yet if they report to a GP or social worker with complaints about this, they risk being written off as neurotic middle-aged women. (BNC: B3G 1099)

(149) There was no answer to her gibe, and, despite the fact that the fumes in the room told her the substance on her hair was likely to blind her if it made contact, she sat up and risked opening one eye. (BNC: JY6 7)

The gerund-participle following the verb risk in examples (146) to (148) represents

possible harm faced by the subject. However, it is interesting to note that the risky deed

behind this possible harm is identified in (146) by the noun phrase following the

preposition by: if the subject refrains from identifying hiniself (the risky deed), he risks

suffering sorne unwanted consequence. The sarne phenomenon is also seen in examples

(147) and (148), although in these cases the risky deed is specified by a clause introduced

2 In fact, Fillmore & Atkins propose another category of object that occurs with the verb risk: V ALUED OBJECT. However, they did not frnd any evidence of its occurrence with a gerund-participle in his corpus. We did fmd only one example of this very rare type of use with an -ing: "1 knew l'd get that look. You know that look, the one that says "oh, you're one ofthose people." And what did 1 do to warrant such a response? 1 confessed to my friends that 1 was planning to attend a Buffy the Vampire Slayer question and answer audience with James Marsters, one of the actors in the series, in Berlin. ( ... ) And as for the Buffy audience, it could best be described as an experience unlike any other. We met people from the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and England. One woman risked keeping her job in order to fly into Berlin from Paris for the weekend. 1 guess a five hour drive from home isn't so crazy after an." (www.suitelOl.comlarticle.cfmJbavaria_southern~ermany/l09155/2) In this example, keeping her job can be seen as "a valued possession of the victim, seen as potentially endangered" (Fillmore & Atkins 1992: 82). In other words, she risked her job in order to fly in from Paris for the weekend. This type of use generally occurs with other direct objects than -ings, such as in He risked his health in taking that job (p. 82), where his health is the valued object which is endangered.

57

by the conjunction if. Such if-clauses are relatively frequent in our corpus, representing 35

cases out of 122 where the -ing corresponds ta HARM in the BNC. On the other hand, in

sentence (149), the gerund-participle constitutes the risky deed itself performed by the

subject of the verb risk. The possible harm she faces is mentioned in the context preceding

the clause with risk, which is that the substance on her hair was likely to blind her if if

made contact. The possible harm faced by the subject when committing a risky deed is

aimost never mentioned explicitly in our corpus, but it can generally be inferred.

With regard to the verbs construed as complements with the verb risk in our corpus,

they are quite varied, whether they correspond to DEED or HARM. However, when the

-ing complement denotes possible harm, sorne tendencies stand out. First, out of 122

examples from the BNC, 27 are construed with the passive construction following risk, as

in (134) and (146)-(148) above, and 20 others with the verb lose, as below:

(150) He suddenly risked losing the crowning glory of a lifetime's secret . endeavour to an unknown malarial "fly-catcher" as the humble naturalist

explorers were known. (BNC: FEP 325)

(151) Then if she can't keep up payments she risks losing her home, as thousands offamilies have done. (BNC: CHI 8374)

(152) So they risk losing most potential economic growth if a climate treaty sets ceilings on emissions. (BNC: ABH 1960)

The passive constructions aU denote unpleasant things which might be done to the subject

of risk. Even more interestingly, most of the verbs used as gerund-participle complements

have a negative connotation such -as, drown, offend, damage, disrupt, undermine, inhibit,

destroy, suppress, break, overbalance, reduce, slip, stop, impede, wear out, splutter, and

lose illustrated above. In fact, when context is added ta verbs that do not necessarily have a

negative connotation like become, acquire, and emphasize, for example, these are found to

also be part of a clause having a negative overtone. This fact of usage is obviously in

concordance with this actualized meaning of risk, as the complement' s verb necessarily has

ta correspond to sorne kind of harmful consequence, whence the negative connotation.

58

As mentioned above, all examples of the verb risk in our corpus were construed

with the gerund-participle, no to-infinitives having been found directly following this verbe

~o-infinitives can only occur with the verb risk in constructions of the type risk + direct

object + to-infinitive, as in the following:

(153) A father risked his life to save his twin babies from a fire which had engulfed the childrens' bedroom. (BNC: KIE 387)

(154) The Resistance risked torture and death to help allied servicemen escape. (BNC: KIN: 2739)

(155) People risked everything to help escapers and want nothing in return. (BNC: FSC 248)

In these examples, the infmitive functions as a purpose clause answering the question ' for

what purpose': an 'in order to' clause could be inserted between the direct object and the

to-infinitive in these examples, as in (156) below:

(156) A father risked his life in order to save his twin babies.

However, as this type of use is of a more complex nature, it will be left for future

investigation. The verb risk can be found followed directly by a to-infinitive in headlines:

(157) Maui News 1 Lives risked to fight fire (www.mauinews.com/edit/2007 /7 /2/01 edit0702.html)

(158) Avalanche Risked To Save Father And Son (www.nationalpost.comJnews/canadaistory.html?id=207252)

In this type of construction, risk is a past participle and not a main verb, thus it is not of a

type which faIls within the scope of this study.


The most frequent temporal relationship between the main verb risk and the gerund

participle in our corpus is that of subsequence. For instance, in:

59

(159) It would seem that just like climbers, mountain bikers will have to leam to live with the odd restriction where their activity clashes with other recreation or conservation interests, otherwise they risk losing certain routes permanently. (BNC: CCP 1306)

(160) Children who own a "Performance" winter jacket bought at Old Navy , clothing stores should stop wearing it immediately, because they risk

becoming entangled on nearby objects. (CPI.Q: Globe & Mail)

the events losing and becoming exist at a point in time subsequent to the state of risk

expressed in the matrix: in both of these cases, the complement' s event is future and non

realized. Example (161) is enlightening with regards to the impression of temporal

subsequence:

(161) A former Justice Department prosecutor, Lawrence Barcella, said that the policy risked offending otherwise friendly countries, which might even bring kidnapping charges against the FBI. (BNC: A5M 429)

The presence of the auxiliary might in the clause following the risk + -ing clause, confirms

that the offending is non-realized.

One also observes in sorne cases a relationship of simultaneity between the verb risk

and its complement, although this type of temporal relation is less frequent than that of

subsequence, as it only occurs in 28 out of 150 examples in the BNC. Three of these are

given below:

(162) But 1 still don't know why Scano's boy risked going to the villa unless they've lost a guard too, which would really put them in difficulty. (BNC: CJX 2952)

(163) "Do you enjoy banking, Herr Wolff?" she risked asking. (BNC: HPO 2970)

(164) Dorothy and 1 are fortunate poets. Our publisher produced both our books traditionally. That means that someone else risked investing in publishing our books. (CPI.Q: The Christian Science Monitor)

60

In such cases the event expressed by the gerund-participle is clearly felt to coincide in time

with that of the main verbe

With regard to the control relationship between the matrix and the complement,

almost aIl cases in our corpus exhibit subject control. For instance, in (165) above, the

understood subject of asking corresponds to that of the main verb, i.e. she. In (166), the

understood realizer of investing is someone else. Two cases of non-subject control were

also found, but as they constitute a very special type of use, they will be discussed in

section 4.4.


The gerund-participle is the direct object of the verb risk: in aIl our examples, it

corresponds to 'that which is risked', thereby fulfilling the fundamental semantic criterion

for direct object function. This is the case whether the complement represents a possible

harm or whether it evokes a risky deed. For instance, in

(165) Any moderaterisked being called a traitor. (Fillmore & Atkins 1992: 92)

(166) Few have risked challenging this. (BNC: EEN 36)

being called and challenging both correspond to 'that which is risked'.

Other tests confirm the semantic relationship which this function involves.

Anaphoric reference to the direct object by means of a pronoun is one such test, as the

examples below illustrate in reference to (165) and (166):

(167) Any moderate risked that.

(168) Few have risked it.

Pseudo-cleft constructions also confirm the gerund-participle' s function as a direct object:

(169) What any moderate risked was being called a traitor.

(170) Challenging this is what few have risked.

61

Finally, active/passive correspondences also yield grammatical results, as in the sentences

below:

(1 71) Challenging this has been risked by few.

(172) Being called a traitor Was not risked by any moderate.

When the complement corresponds evokes a possible hann, the passive sometimes sounds

awkward, as it presents the infonnation differently from the active construction and can be

clumsy as a paraphrase with many clear cases of direct object function, as in example (92)

seen earlier.

3.3.4 Explanation of Temporality and Control

We are now in a position to propose an explanation for temporal and control

interpretations with the verb risk. Our observations show that temporal 'effects of

simultaneity or subsequence are both possible. As the gerund-participle has the function of

direct object in aIl uses, it identifies-'that which is risked', and its relation with its transitive

matrix verb is basically non-temporal. This function, combined with the meaning of the

gerund-participle which is simply to evoke an event holistically without any temporal

reference, means that any temporal relationship perceived between risk and its complement

is due to implications based on the actual meaning of the verb risk. When risk evokes the

notion of potentially incurring harm, there is an impression of temporal subsequence, as in

examples (159)-(161) ab ove where the subject puts himself in a risky situation which might

result in an undesirable or unpleasant result. Since this consequence has not happened yet,

it is nonnal that the gerund-participle evokes its event as future and unrealized vis-à-vis the

main verb's event. On the other hand, when risk evokes the perfonning of a risky deed, the

impression produced is necessarily one of simultaneity, as in (162)-(164). This temporal

effect can be explained by the fact that if you risk doing something which could have sorne

62

unwanted or unfortunate consequences, both events, the risking and the risky deed

represented by the complement, necessarily have to occur at the same time. Indeed, in this

case the risking is the very performance of the risky deed itself.

With regards to control, the gerund-participle complement almost always shows

subject control readings in our examples with risk. Here again, this effect is attributable to

the semantic content of the matrix. If someone puts himself in a situation in which he may

incur potential harm, it is usually the risker who brings down upon himself the actualization

of the event, as in He risked losing his job. A few cases of non-subject control were

however found when the. gerund-participle corresponds to HARM; they will be discussed in

section 4.4. As for the second sense of the verb risk, if someone performs sorne action

which may have harmful consequences (DEED), this someone is perforce the author of the

risky deed evoked by the -ing, as in She risked opening her eyes aga in. In this sense of risk,

one risks something by performing it oneself, which explains the constant subject control

reading.

3.4 THE VERBS VENTURE AND AD VENTURE


The verb venture is always found with the to-infinitive in our corpus. In total, 175

examples were collected from LOB, BROWN, and CPLQ, including 90 examples from the

BNC. The Oxford Advanced Learner 's Dictionary paraphrases venture + to-infinitive in the

following terms: "to say or do something in a careful way, especially because it might upset

or offend sornebody" (p. 1697). Collins Cobuild states that "if you venture a question or a

statement, you say it in a cautious hesitant manner because you are afraid it rnight be stupid

or wrong" (p. 1860). Sirnilarly, when discussing verbs which are sirnilar verbs to venture,

Hayakama (1994) comments that "when the purpose is to show sorne courteous

disagreernent or resolve, venture is preferred" as in "1 venture to contradict you" (p. 490).

ln sirnilar fashion, Webster 's Third defines venture as "ta dare or have the courage or

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boldness to advance, offer, or put forward especially when rebuff, rejection, or censure

seem likely to ensue" (p. 2441). While these definitions and paraphrases would be far too

precise to account for aIl the examples of venture in our corpus, they do bring out the fact

that, when someone ventures to do something, that person proceeds in a hesitant way. We

thus propose that the meaning of venture is 'to hesitantly advance into the unknown'. This

is illustrated by the following examples:

(173) He never left our shores and he only once ventured to cross the border into Scotland. (BNC: J55 200)

(1 74) In the late seventeenth century, before union with England, the Scots ventured to carve out a colony in the New World--with fateful results. (CPLQ: Americas)

(175) Ministers are reluctant to believe that Your Majesty's resolve is irrevocable and still venture to hope that before Your Majesty pronounces art Y fomial decision Your Majesty may be pleased to reconsider an intention which must so deeply and so vitally affect all Your Majesty's subjects. (BNC: EFN 2077)

(176) There's a small restaurant just off the main' beach road in Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital city, whose curries are so violent that local residents seldom venture to recommend it to their foreign friends. (CPLQ: Newsweek International)

(177) ln the light of the quite different issue which was before the House in GiIlick's case 1 venture to doubt whether Lord Scarman meant more than that the exclusive right of the parents to consent to treatlnent terminated, but 1 may weIl be wrong. (BNC: FDC 160)

(178) 1 venture to write and enquire if you would oblige me by calling at this Officer, at sorne time convenient to yourself: 1 am not at liberty to offer any further information at this juncture, but 1 think 1 may say that our meeting will be to your advantage. (BNC: FPM 2407)

The hesitancy or the cautious manner in which one proceeds when venturing to do

something is even more explicit in the following examples:

(179) With apologies to Winston Churchill 1 venture to mis-quote: "Never has so much rubbish been written by a few, against so many."(BNC: BN3 1624) ,

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(180) AIl of Henderson's novels have a crisp authority and a snappy pace. This one is about Kelly Jacobs, a lifeguard and widow of a navy Seal, who slowly ventures to love again even as the past returns to haunt her. (CPI.Q: Booklist)

(181) 1 read Keith Craints Nov. 14 column on fixed-price selling as the "next big idea," and not knowing his background in the auto business, other than this publication, 1 would venture to say that he has never sold a car in his life. (CPI.Q: Automotive News)

(182) 1 would venture to suggest that many of the potential No votes could be converted to Yes if the prime minister were to resign before Oct. 26. Most of us would feel safer about loopholes in the Constitution if he were not lurking in the towers, or anywhere else, ofpower. (CPLQ: Globe & Mail)

(183) May 1 venture to say what 1 really think about Eastern women and Western women? Frankly, 1 think the Western women are more sensible, less freakish, more solid, than many of the women we see in New York and other large Eastern cities. (CPI.Q: Forbes)

ln (179), the speaker cautiously apologizes in advance because he knows Churchill might

have objected to this use of his famous phrase referring to the heroism of RFA pilots in

World War II. In (180), the use of the adverb slowly, pertaining to how the subject ventures

to love again, tells of her reluctance to do so. In examples (181) and (182), the modal would

highlights the hesitation of the subjects, as would is used here to hedge the speaker' s

statement, presenting the venturing as a mere possibility. Finally, (183) is interesting

because the subject feels the need to politely ask for permission before going ahead and

saying what he thinks.

The element of risk, which is common to all the verbs under study here, is present in

the meaning of venture because of the unknown territory into which the subject advances.

Contained in this 'unknown', there are things that could happen, possible unwanted

consequences and unfortunate events, which prompt the subject who goes forward with

sorne action to do so hesitantly and cautiously. In Fillmore & Atkins' terminology the 10-

infinitive in venture + to-infinitive constructions represents DEED, something the subject

does which might cause potential harm. This possible hann is generally not mentioned

explicitly, although it is explicit in sorne examples like (184) below:

65

(184) At the risk of being treated as a terrible simplifier 1 venture to assert that the author of Daniel 7: 12 was evidently writing or at least putting the last touches to his prophecies immediately after the reconsecration of the "Temple (in December 164?). (BNC: HOK 1685)

Here, the speaker commits the deed of asserting that the author of Daniel 7:12 was

evidently writing or at least putting the last touches ta his prophecies immediately after the

reconsecration of the Temple. The speaker runs the risk of being treated as a terrible

simplifier.

ln addition ta the element of risk implied by the meaning of the verb venture, going

forward hesitantly into unknown territory implicitly requires courage. This explains the fact

that venture is sometimes felt to be akin to the verb dare, as in the foUowing:

(185) Father Tom ventures to help where others no longer dare. (CPLQ: The Christian Science Monitor)

(186) Dorothy Lipovenko has bravely ventured to question CUITent ideology - an ideology which equates institutionalized abortion with women's best interests. (CPI.Q: Globe & Mail)

(187) Any man who gets ta be the managing editor of the New York Times can safely be described as a man blessed with self-confidence. E. Clifton Daniel, now 75, demonstrated that quality anew last week when he ventured to name the ten most important headlines of the 20th century. (CPI.Q: Time)

In (185), it seems obvious that to help 'where no others dare' requires Father Tom to be

brave. The adjective bravely is used in (186) to de scribe in which state of mind the subject

was when she ventured ta question CUITent ideology. Finally, the context in (187) tells us

that E. Clifton Daniel is a self-confident man, and that he showed it when he ventured to

name the ten most important headlines of the 20th century; he thus demonstrated courage

and bravery. In these three examples, the verb venture could be replaced with dare without

a great difference in meaning.

As for the verbs used as complements of venture in our corpus, they are quite

varied, although this verb shows a natural affinity for verbs of linguistic expression: of the

r--------- --------- ----- - - - - --- --------

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90 examples gathered from the BNC, 67 are construed with verbs such as say, suggest,

affirm, ask, address, add, write, mis-quote, disagree, questi~n, propose, express, criticise

and tell, representing more than 73% of all occurrences of the verb venture. The fact that

'hesitantly going forward into the unknown' has an affinity for this type of verbs seems

logical:, we often feel a hesitation before saying something, not knowing how it is going to

be received.3 With verbs of linguistic expression, the unwanted consequence of the

venturing is generally understood to be rejection, rebuff, or censure~ although this is rarely

mentioned explicitly in the context.

Having clarified the semantics of venture, the question of why it never occurs with

the gerund-participle still remains to be answered. We hypothesize that the idea of

'hesitantly advancing into the unknown' has a natural affinity with the idea of movement

expressed by the preposition 10. This is confirmed by the occurrence of the verb venture

with many other prepositions expressing movement, such as lowards, inlo, in, inside,

beyond, along, ouI, away, andforward:

(188) It was only nine years since Charles Sturt had returned, starving and almost blind, from discovering the Darling and the Murray Rivers; it was to be another five years before he ventured towards the centre of Australia in search ofthat mythical inland sea. (BNC: HRB 525)

(189) Cautiously she ventured into her own bedroom first. (BNe: GIS 2586)

(190) ln a fortunate moment 1 noticed a sign reading Jardin de Paris Restaurant Français, and abandoning Anastasia on a pavement, a procedure to which East Europeans do not seem to take exception, 1 ventured in to discover whether anyone spoke French. (BNC: AE8 1463)

(191) 1 am the owner of this theatre and you should have sought my permission before you ventured inside, young lady. (BNe: CKD 1681)

3 This type of usage seems to be connected also to the construction start + to say, discussed in Duffley 2006a. Indeed, in examples like He started to say something, but thought better of it (Freed 1979 in Duffley 2006a: 92), we see a movement caught in the middle because the speaker suddenly realized the possible consequences of his statement. This type of use is a manifestation of the fact that we sometimes hesitate before saying sornething, because we might suffer sorne possible unwanted consequences. However, as we shaH see later, these two uses differ with regards to the actualization of the event evoked by the infmitival complement. In the case of starf + fo say, the complement's event is understood to be non-realized; with venture + to + any verb of linguistic expression, the event represented by the complement is understood to be actualized.

67

(192) One of the most popular rnisconceptions about the past is that our ancestors were rooted in one particular place, that they rarely ventured beyond their restricted horizons and that consequently they were limited in their outlook and in their knowledge of life beyond the parish. (BNC: HWD 348)

(193) The rain came as 1 reached the drive of the hotel, set amongst trees, and 1 ventured along it in search of shelter. (BNC: CJH 271)

(194) It only ventures out at night, and spends most of its time up in trees or scrambling through scrub. (BNC: K24 951)

(195) But most of aIl eagles wanted to see the young take flight, and venture away from their parents and explore the world where they, like the adults, must leam to survive the winter. (BNC: FP3 1065)

(196) The point Îs that we will never know what God can do with us until we've ventured forward with a little faith. (BNC: G5H 214)

In addition to these prepositions, which aU indicate sorne kind of movement, the verb

venture is also found with the preposition to construed with a noun complement:

(197) He ventured to the Blighted Isle in search of his father's armour. (BNC: CM1748)

(198) In 1863 he led a tour to Paris and Switzerland; in 1864 he ventured to Italy with parties of t o uri sts. (BNC: ASJ 245)

Examples (197) and (198) show the preposition to in its stereotypical use, denoting a

physical movement in space from one point to another. Overall, the examples presented

above illustrate the very strong binding between the verb venture and the idea of

movement, which accounts for its construal with the to + infinitive construction rather than

with the gerund-participle.

As regards the verb adventure, no occurrence ofthis verb followed directly by a to

infinitive or a gerund-participle was found in either the BNe, ;LOB, BROWN and CPLQ4.

4 When the number of examples found in the BNC, LOB, BROWN and CPLQ proved insufficient for our purposes, we conducted a search on the Internet, using Google. In these cases, we looked for a combination of adventure (conjugated) + to-infmitive or gerund-participle with 5 highly frequent verbs (say, gel, go, he, have). For each search, we looked at a maximum of 10 pages of results, for a total of 100 hits per separate

68

The small number of examples found shows that the verb adventure is a rather infrequent

rneans for expressing risk. Moreover, one third of the examples found dated from the 19th

century, which suggests that this verb is sornewhat archaic5• This would explain why sorne

dictionaries (cf. Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary) do not even list adventure as a

verb anymore, but only as a noun.

Historically, the verb adventure is closely related to the verb venture. The former

developed as an aphetic form of the latter in the ISth century (Oxford English Dictionary

Online). A look at dictionary definitions of the verb adventure shows that the two are

indeed very close in meaning. "To dare, to mn the risk, make the experiment; to go as far

as, to venture" is one sense of adventure according to the Oxford English Dictionary

Online. Again, in 'to go as far to', we see the idea of forward movement expressed.

Similarly, Webster 's Third defines ad venture as "to expose to possible danger or loss",

giving risk and venture as synonyms (p. 31) Another sense given by this dictionary for

adventure is "to suggest venturesomely: adventure an opinion" (p. 31). However, the latter

cannot be held to be the meaning of adventure; it is rather the meaning of this verb

followed by a direct object. Moreover, 'to adventure an opinion' does not mean 'to

suggest', but 'to put forward into unknown territory'. Our hypothesis as to the meaning of

adventure is that it is similar, if not identical, to venture, i.e. 'to hesitantly advance into the

unknown', but that it is felt to be archaic. With adventure, one also feels a clearer sense of

adventuresomeness; thus, in its intransitive use, adventure could be said to mean 'to

advance adventurously into the unknown'. In its transitive use, adventure can be defined as

'to put forward hesitantly or adventurously into the unknown' .

search. This method of gathering examples allowed for frequency comparisons with other verbs for which a Google search was necessary. 5 As it is the case with other verbs studied here, not aIl uses of the verb adventure carry an element ofrisk. For instance, in the following example, adventured pretty much means "happened": "And perchance this cap did him as much good when he was dead, as it wou Id have done if he had been living. Sure 1 am, that faithful linen did him far more service, which adventured to go down with him into the grave, for the winding ofhis body therein." (books.google.calbooks?id=21 tn3p VI w6QC&pg=P A27 6&lpg=P A276&dq=%22adventured+to+go%22&sou rce=web&ots=Ho214DAqOJ&sig=vfbnKPXuEWHAdCL_XPEs9pCOKO&hl=fr&sa=X&oi=book_result&res num=5&ct=result).

69

The following examples bring out the hesitancy ofth~ subject in going forward into

something which he is not too comfortable with: .

(199) A friend of mine, who 1 will henceforth refer to as Musical G, or maybe just G, invited me to find a date and go surfing. 1 will admit that 1 have adventured to go surling before, but it wasn't of the least embarrassing circumstances l've ever been in. While it is true that 1 enjoyed myself immensely, 1 can't help but think that a date situation that is set up to make you look like a complete fool may not be the best idea. (yellowlives.blogspot.com/2007 /09/major-bubbles-needs-date.html)

(200) My first shopping experience: 1 spent Sunday walking around, doing a little shopping. 1 went to the grocery store for sorne coffee (hello caffeine headaches!), and a few other department stores and street markets. This was the frrst time 1 was alone since larrived in Taiyuan. 1 was the center of attention in every shop 1 was in. People stared, pointe d, smiled, laughed, said hello, said things to me in Chinese, looked at me, tapped their friends and then they looked over too, followed me around, started looking at whatever 1 was looking at - as if they' never noticed it before. 1 was never scared or nervous, but 1 admit 1 was completely self-conscious and not used to so much attention. Of course, 1 always smiled and nodded and pretended not to notice or care, but between you and me, it sorta freaked me out. 1 walked around for about 2 ho urs and then 1 just couldn't take it anymore. 1 mean, people at work stare at me, and l've been going out to dinner with my colleagues every night where people on the street stare at us (mostly me because l'm a woman), but this is the first time 1 was aIl alone. 1 imagine this is something that one would get used to, but it hasn't happened to me yet. The downside of feeling so watched was that 1 was too embarrassed to take a lot of pictures that 1 would have normally taken.

It's a week later and 1 adventured to go shopping again. While 1 knew better where to go and had an idea of stuff 1 wanted to get, 1 still didn't enj oy an the attention 1 received. 1 tried to · remember what my mother told me, that many people probably have never seen a woman like me, except maybe on TV, and that 1 am an ambassador of America and 1 should be proud ... oh, blah blah. You try walking down a crowded street with everyone and their brother looking at you and pointing. (www.sharonline.net/china/index.htm)

Example (200) is particularly interesting: the long context shows why shopping caused

hesitation on the part of the speaker, as shopping in the Chine se city of Tayuan proved to

be quite an adventurous enterprise for this blogger. The examples below clearly illustrate

the close relation between the verbs adventure and venture:

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(201) Trustee Arends adventured to say we would have accomplished the same things without the lobbyist. The reason she made the motion to not include the lobbyist is because she dues not think he is worth $36,000 a year and she added, as has been told to us by many, the school disconnection process has been stymied for quite sorne tirne. ( www.vilIage.bartlett.il.us/assets/pdfs/ agendasminutes/minuteslbrd/08040 1 brd. pdt)

(202) 1 adventured to say, so far as discretion did go, in defence of our friend, and did urge rnuch in behalf of youth and enticing love, which did often abate of right measures in fair ladies; aIl which did nothing soothe her highness' anger, who said, "1 have made her my servant, and she will now make herself my mistress; but, in good faith" William, she shaH not, and so tell her." (books.google.calbooks?id=rdOlAAAAlAAJ&pg=P Al 07 &lpg=P Al 07 &dq =%22adventured+to+say%22&source=web&ots=oBcMmXpCcq&sig=Mnl _ 6HBNLnUOLObs 1 wUh YGW dzKY &hl=fr&sa= X&oi=book_resu1t&resnu m==7 &ct==result)

This type of use corresponds to much more the common structure venture + to say: as does

venture mean 'to put forward hesitantly into the unknown', so that adventure could be

replaced here by the verb venture without much change in meaning.

As with venture, aIl of the examples of adventure in the corpus are construed with

the to-infinitive, a fact which is explainable by this verb' s lexical meaning: the idea of

'advancing adventurously into the unknown' has a natural affinity with the idea of

movement expressed by the preposition to. Moreover, the fact that adventure also occurs

with a wide range of prepositions indicating movement lends strength to this argument. In

the following examples, adventure occurs with the prepositions down, towards, away,

along, forward, beyond, and into:

(203) So 1 left Pete to do the hard work while 1 adventured down the "world's most dangerous road" from La Paz to Coroico on a mountain bike and spent 2 days relaxing around a pool in the jungle-like mountains of Coroico. ( www.travelpod.comltravelblogentries/worldroarners/s._ america _2006/1146 349260/tpod.html)

(204) We were surprised to find when we arrived that it was snowing out! And 1 don't mean just a little, it was practically a bli~rd! Nonetheless we adventured towards our first stop, Anne Frank's House. (ajg8-londoncalling.blogspot.com/2008_04_01_archive.html)

(205) This rooster adventured away from home down to the river ... (www.suemorrisonfineart.com/gallery/1699/Shoreline%20Birdsl)

71

(206) We adventured along the beach and found it full of cute little hermit crabs, nice rocks and shells, tons of coconuts. ( drivingsocrates.coml ecosystems-are-inward-as-much-as-outward-facingpart-i)

(207) He brought humor and a colorful personality to the lives ofhis many friends, and inspired others to believe in themselves as they adventured forward in life. (www.idahotributes.comlsearch/ show _listing/23 87)

(208) The Bronco broke a lot of new ground, offering the best of both freeway and off-road driving, opening up the big country to Americans who had seldom adventured beyond shopping malIs and interstate highway rest areas. (auto.howstuffworks.com/1966-1977 -ford-bronco.htm)

(209) Emily Carr was an artist who boldly adventured into the British Columbia landscape and recorded the beauty of the forests in her home province. (www.carleton.ca/gallery/schoolwork/emilycarrpage.html)

These examples ilIustrate the very strong semantic binding between the verb adventure and

the idea of movement, which accounts for this verb's construal with the to-infinitive

construction rather than with the gerund-participle.


ln aIl uses of both the verbs venture and adventure in the corpus, the infinitival

complement' s event is felt to be subsequent with respect to that of the main verb,

corresponding to a realized result of the venturing, as in:

(210) 1 venture to suggest, however, that you are probably, in common with most people, doing sorne parts of the process but not aIl of it. (BNC: B2F 685)

(211) Yet they adventured to go back; but it was so dark, and the flood so high, that in their going back they had like to have been drowned nine or ten times. (books.google.ca/books?id=zgIDAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA 118&lpg=PA118&d q=%22adventured+to+go%22&source=web&ots=PsShfzJeDA&sig=kOfY2

72

Kj_ x WQ6ADuB fN4 QkFXeA UQ&hl=fr&sa= X&oi=book _result&resnum=5 &ct=result)

As regards the type of control relationship seen between the verbs venture and

adventure as main verbs and the to-infinitive as complement, one always observes subject

control. For instance, in (210) and (211) above, the subject of the main verb is understood

to be the actual realizer of the infinitive's event.


The to-infmitive does not fulfill the role of a direct object with the verbs venture and

adventure, but rather that of result-specifier. First, it is not felt to correspond to ' that which

is ventured/adventured' . In

(212) Later chroniclers attempted to compile this infonnation into histories of the Empire, and sorne ventured to make lists ofreigning Ernperors. (BNC: CNI 73)

(213) The lndians maintained afterwards that white men were then skulking about near to us, and that they had seen them from the inside of their houses, though no one adventured to go out to se arch for them. (pub lications. ohiohistory .org/ ohsternplate. cfm ?action=detail&Page=002222 6.html&StartPage=205&EndPage=266&volume=22&newtitle= Volume%20 22~20Page~20205)

to ma/œ lists and to go are not felt to be 'that which is ventured/adventured'. Consequently,

the to-infinitive cannot be construed as subject of a corresponding passive construction:

(214) * To make lists ofreigning Emperors was ventured by sorne.

(215) * To go out to search for them was adventured by no one.

Anaphoric reference by rneans of a pronoun is not possible either:

(216) * Sorne ventured that / it.

(217) Sorne ventured to.

(218) *N 0 one adventured that lit.

(219) No one adventured to.

73

Examples (217) and (219) show that to ·is the preferred preposition for substitution. Pseudo

cleft constructions also yield questionable results:

(220) * What sorne ventured was to make lists of reigning Emperors.

(221) * To make lists ofreigning Emperors was what sorne ventured.

(222) * What no one adventured was to go out to search for thern.

(223) * To go out to search for them was what no one adventured.

The to-infinitive functions rather as an adverbial result specifier when it is used as

complement of venture and adventure. With both of these verbs the infinitival phrase

denotes the destination ta which the 'hesitantly advancing into the unknown' leads.

3.4.4 Exp/anation of Temporality and Control

AlI of the pieces are in place to propose an explanation for temporal and control

interpretations with the verbs venture and adventure. With regards ta temporality, as with

other cases of actualization observed with a to-infinitive complement, there is a relationship

of result-type subsequence between the matrix and the complement's event. The

relationship between these two verbs and the infinitival complement is similar to that

observed with verbs of achievement like manage:

(224) Using both hands, she rnanaged to unlock the door. (BNC: FS2 473)

In (224), the verb manage means 'to deal successfully with a challenging situation', a

lexical meaning which always implies actualization of the to-infinitive complement' s

event: the meaning of the preposition to is that of a movement potentially leading to a

point, and so the infinitive is seen .as that to which the main verb' s event leads. There is

74

consequently a before/after relation in time between the 'dealing with a challenging

situation' and the result achieved, since the successful struggling leads to the unlocking of

the door.

The same type of subsequent result impression is at work with venture and

adventure. Since the lexical meanings of venture and adventure involves the notion of a

movement leading into unknown territory, the infinitive' s event is understood to

correspond to this unknown territory and therefore to be actualized, just as with manage.

lndeed, 'to advance hesitantly / adventurously into the unknown' necessarily leads to the

presence of the subject in the unknown territory, a resulting situation to which certain

unknown risks are attached. The following examples allow us to see more clearly this

before/after relationship in time between the verb venture and its to-infinitive complement:

(225) A couple of summers ago, Rich and 1 ventured to Poland for a holiday. (boakes.org/category/general/travel/europe/polandl)

(226) Two or three patrons had ventured to sit down at a table, but they wore the restless look of one in haste to catch a train. (chestofbooks.comltravel/denmark/John-Stoddard-Lectures/Denmark-Part-3.html)

Example (225), where the verb venture is followed by the preposition to and a noun,

illustrates the notion of movement in space between a point A occupied by the subjects

before the venturing actually occurred, and a point B, which is Poland. Poland is thus the

end-point of the movement in space signified by the preposition to, giving rise to a

before/ after position in space. In (226), we have the same relationship of subsequence, but

what we see is a movement in time. In the to + infinitive construction, the bare stem acts as

the end-point of the movement signified by to. In this case, the verb sil is the terminal

point, and henceforth the resulting situation ensuing upon the 'hesitantly advancing into the

unknown'. Thus, the meanings of venture and adventure, combined with the meaning of

the to-infinitive and its function, explain the constant temporal effect of subsequence

observed with these verbs when they are followed by an infinitival complement.

75

Now that we have a better understanding of temporal relationships with these verbs,

we are better equipped to compare the verbs venture and risk in this regard. The following

examples wiV help to bring out the difference in meaning between these two verbs, and the

respective temporal relationships they give rise to when construed with a complement:

(227) Sorne 50 years ago, Australian physician John Cade obserVed the calming effect that lithium had on small animaIs. After testing the safety of lithium on himself, Cade ventured to try it on people suffering from the wild mood swings ofmanic depression. (CPLQ: Science News)

(228) Cade risked trying it on people suffering from the wild mood swings of manic depression.

(229) In the late seventeenth century, before union with England, the Scots ventured to carve out a colony in the New World--with fateful results. (CPLQ: Americas)

(230) The Scots risked carving out a colony in the New World with fateful results.

When examples (227) and (229) are paraphrased with risk + -ing, we observe a relationship

of simultaneity between the main verb and its complement, instead of one of subsequence

as is the case with venture + to-infinitive. In examples (228) and (230), risk means 'to

perform a risky deed', which necessarily entails that the deed and the performance of this

deed are simultaneous in time. In the parallel constructions with venture + to-infinitive,

venture means 'to hesitantly advance into unknown territory' and the advancing leads to the

presence of the subject in unknown territory. The complement's event is understood to be

actualized with both risk and venture, but the lexical meaning of each verb and the meaning

and function of their respective complements give rise to a different relationship in time

between the matrix and the complement.

As regards control, we saw that both venture and adventure produce constant

subject control readings. Again, this impression is the logical product of the interactions

between the meaning of the to-infinitive, its function as complement, and the lexical

meaning of the main verbe For instance, in (228), venture implies a movement towards the

result represented by the infinitive, and to simply links the rnatrix and the infinitive sil as

the term to which this movement leads. Accordingly, it cornes as no surpiise that the

76

realizer of the 'hesitantly advancing into the unknown' is logically understood to be the

same as that of the sitting. In fact, one could not venture or adventure to perfonn an action

which is carried out by someone else than oneself.

3.5 THE VERB HAZARD


The verb hazard occurs with both the to-infinitive and the gerund-participle

complements in our corpus. The data however suggest a tendency for construal with the

infinitive, with 45 cases as opposed to 19 with the -ing. AlI our examples were gathered on

the Internet, as the verb hazard was ne ver found to occur with these complements in our

main corpuses.6 This suggests that this verb is less frequent in Modem English in

comparison to risk and venture.

With the infinitive, the verb hazard evokes a meaning which is best described as 'to

go ahead and actualize a hazardous event':

(231) 1 hazard to say that you could open one of these on your living room carpet with no worries whatsoever. ( www.aquahobby.comlproducts/e _ eheim ~rofessional_ canister _ filters. php)

(232) We hazard to say that no military has ever been more discriminating and gone to such lengths to avoid inflicting civilian casualties. (www.nybooks.comlarticles/15540)

(233) 1 would hazard to guess that more accidents are caused by people using their cell phones while driving than by people who had been drinking. ( www.topix.com/forumlcity/bridgeport -ct/T6S 7C8MNC 174 Lü BQE)

(234) 1 would hazard to guess that this book is intended for the "arm-chair naturalist." Very few of us can afford vacations to the distant locales where

6 As for the verb venture, we looked for a combination of hazard (conjugated) + to-infmitive or gerundparticiple with the verbs say, get, go, he, and have. A separate search for "would hazard 10 say/saying" and "would hazard to guess/guessing' was also conductecL as these were felt to be frequent occurrences of hazard.

77

many of the marine mammals in this book live. (www.amazon.com/reviewIR3V6A7QC514RJD)

(235) We ride' the Colorado river below the Parker strip to stay away from the nuts like this, and only on weekdays do we hazard to go near Havasu or Needles. (www.sea-doo.net/boardlthread.asp?threadid=93681 )

In these sentences, the subject puts forward an opinion and exposes himself to possible

rebuff, censure or rejection. This type of use of hazard + to say/guess is very' similar to the

very frequent occurrence of venture + to + verbs of linguistic expression. These examples

with hazard could be paraphrased with venture without a significant difference in meaning:

the notion of ' to hesitantly advance into the unknown' is closely akin to that of 'to go

forward and actualize a hazardous event'. With both verbs, the subject feels hesitant;

however, with hazard a greater sense of tentativeness is felt. Quite rightly, Webster 's New

Dictionary of Synonyms describes hazard as suggesting "more uncertainty or

precariousness than venture and less hope of a favourable outcome" (p. 857). This nuance

in meaning felt between the two verbs is due to the potential meaning of the word hazard,

as the latter carries more implication of danger or chance than the word venture. If someone

goes on a venture, danger is not always implied in such an enterprise; the subject may

simply venture to an exotic or exciting destination for instance. The nuance between these

two verbs is best seen in the following examples:

(236) Stifling a giggle, she hazarded a guess that the wardrobe would be full of the son's clothes. (BNC: AMC 606)

(237) Stifling a giggle, she ventured a guess that the wardrobe would be full of the son's clothes.

The verb hazard presents the guess as more chancy than venture does.

The frequent occurrence of would preceding the verb hazard in our corpus is a

further testimony to the subject's hesitation in 'going forward and actualizing the event', as

in (233)-(234) above and the following:

78

(238) ln spite of being what seemed like the busiest day in several years, 1 would hazard to say that (Dr. Embry's) presentation was one of the best received this year. (www.cspg.org/students/students-outreach-lecture.cfm)

(239) 1 would hazard to say that this was sloppy political work and that someone needs a new lawyer. (www.moralhealth.comlblog/_archives/2007/8/30/3193167.html)

(240) And 1 would even hazard to say that it wasn't made to be watched; sometimes an artist endeavours to dosomething totally different and new and original, and while occasionally it is groundbreaking and incredible, usually it isn't. (everything2.com/node/692122)

(241) 1 would hazard to guess that if you stopped 10000 T orontonians on the street and asked them who John Abell was they wouldn't have a clue. ( citynoise.org/article/5488)

Indeed, the modal would brings out more clearly the uncertainty or the hesitancy of the

subject in hazarding to say or guess something. This type of use of would is a common

occurrence with verbs of saying and guessing as in:

(242) 1 would say that she was almost better than Churchill. (BNC: AJD 1273)

(243) 1 would guess quite a bit of money goes into the local economy. (BNC: KRL 3913)

As with venture and adventure, the complement in hazard + to-infinitive

constructions always represents DEED. When hazard is followed by an infinitival

complement, the subject goes forward and actualizes a hazardous deed which might result

in unfortunate or unwanted consequences. The possible harm is not mentioned explicitly in

the context, but it can generally be inferred. It is in this potential hazard that the element of

risk present in all the verbs considered for this study lies. It is also because of this h~ard

that the subject feels hesitation prior to going ahead and actualizing the complement' s

event. Not surprisingly, as with venture and adventure, the verb hazard can also be

paraphrased easily with the verb dare in certain cases, as in the following:

(244) So 1 hazarded to go to Puncher's home, hoping that 1 would meet my heart's desire, bent over a basin of washing, singing the familiar Christmas carol.

79

(books.google.calbooks?id= V9CxN cAPqvoC&pg=P A3 7 &lpg=P A3 7 &dq== %22hazarded+to+go%22&source==web&ots=g6gN5D4EPc&sig=n7HwdHc OHzOTNwvxwnFtldwBGMO&hl=fr&sa=X&oi=book result&resnum=3&c t=result)

Indeed, 'to go ahead and actualize a hazardous event' implicitly requires courage or

bravery, a notion which is prorninent in the meaning of the verb dare. Hazard to say can

also be paraphrased as 'be so bold as to say' in sorne cases.

On the other hand, sirnilarly to the verb risk, hazard can have two different actual

meanings when it is construed with the 'gerund-participle: DEED or HARM. In the

following set of examples, the verb hazard rneans 'to face a potential hazard':

(245) While pet shops rnay meet these prices, without the above guarantees you hazard getting an animal that may have been culled from a breeder's stock, a rancher's unwanted leftovers or from an inexperienced breeder. ( www.petplace.com!small-mammalslbuying -a-chinchilla/page l.aspx)

(246) To simply enjoy hirnself and his life, without constantly toning himself down and checking the depressive pulse of others, meant he hazarded being seen as a traÏtorous villain and, as a consequence, ending up in total isolation. (books.google.calbooks?id=HvJiENaRUMC&pg=PA303&lpg=PA303&dq= %22hazarded+being%22&source==web&ots=fPNkIibtDC&sig=xeGAU2mnj abH7rbPbvt8jhidAOY &hl=fr&sa== X&oi=book _ result&resnum=2&ct==result #PPA304,Ml)

(247) To refuse the honour proposed would have been uncourteous, 1 might say ungracious: in accepting it, 1 hazarded being thought ostentatious. (books.google.ca/books?id=M3MoFShNJZQC&pg=P A64&lpg==P A64&dq= %22hazarded+being%22&source==web&ots=u2gN4 7XMxb&sig=9JSAC 1 K erHR3 x52fD5s 1 YuDwfg&hl=fr&sa= X&oi=book _ result&resnum=5&ct=res ult)

ln this type of use, the meaning of hazard is very similar to that of the verb risk. It is thus

no surprise that in aIl cases of hazard with a gerund-participle denoting a possible hazard in

our corpus, the main verb could be paraphrased by risk without much change in meaning.

However, in aIl our examples of hazard + being, the potential hazard is always sorne

80

damage to the subject' s reputation. In the light of this, it seems like this sense of hazard is

slightly more specific than risk, which might also explain its less frequent occurrence.

ln addition to this actual meaning, hazard can also mean 'to perform a hazardous

deed', as in the following:

(248) At the risk of making one of William Blake's idiotic generalizations, 1 might hazard saying that in the 1960s and '70s there existed a sort of dichotomy between prayer and action in the priesthood, resulting at times in a failure to integrate both into the one following of Jesus Christ. (www.ewtn.com/library /PRIESTSIPRLIFEPR. TXT)

(249) My next teacher was livid that his predecessor had instructed a relative novice to such a potentially hazardous method. My dad and grandfather, both accomplished cometists and trumpeters, didn't like the idea either. 1 quit it and have never hazarded going back to it since. That was 60 years ago. Wow!!!!!!! ( www.trumpetmaster.comlvb/f131 /something-new-ive-beentrying364 73. html)

(250) No sooner had the news of the "Black Hawk Purchase" spread through Illinois, Indiana and Ohio than a crowd of settlers from those states, fired with the tales of the wonderful beauty and fertility of the land included in thePurchase strip, began to hurry by team and flat boat to the Mississippi. Many of them, though the land was not open to settlement until the first of June, hazarded getting across the river early in the spring and squatting on the land. (iagenweb.org/boards/claytonlbiographies/index.cgi?rev=63 798)

(251) l've never been to an SF convention! 1 like SF on film and TV, but have never hazarded going to a convention. (members.ozemail.com.aulr-.-bcoster/jo_anne_home.htm)

ln these examples, the complement's event represents a hazardous deed which the subject

performs. As shown above regarding hazard + to-infinitive, there is felt to be less ce rtai nt y

about the outcome. In sorne cases, such as (248)-(250) for instance, hazard canbe replaced

by risk while keeping the essentials of its rneaning. In others such as (251), the main verb is

best paraphrased with dari! + to-infinitive, because of the greater ernphasis on boldness.

81


One observes a temporal relation of result-type subsequence between the main verb

hazard and the to-infinitive complement, the complement's event always being understood

to be realized as a result of the actualization of the main verb's event, as in the following

examples:

(252) This is, 1 hazard to say, probably the most overrated book in the history of the literary world. (www.amazon.com/reviewIRLSRG9CBLNHUN)

(253) Leaving out a few prominent blogs like Andrew Sullivan's, 1 would hazard to guess that most people who read blogs are bloggers themselves. It is truly an echo chamber. (blogs.salon.coml0002486/)

In both of these uses; the event represented by the infinitival complement is felt to be

actually accompli shed as the actualized result of 'going ahead and actualizing a hazardous

event.'

In the cases where hazard is followed by a gerund-participle, a temporal impression

of future-type subseq~ence can also be observed in sorne cases. For instance, in:

(254) As the de-Anglicizing message caught on over the next decade, those who attempted "to snuff out [Gaelic] by their tacit discouragement" hazarded being reproached as anti-national and as betraying unbecoming cultural cringe". (books.google.ca/books?id=IUo YavyB3IC&pg=P A45&lpg=P A45&dq=%2 2hazarded+being%22&source=web&ots=ikHtfftsQ3&sig=t VyPnv71 ePL2Z UWV69QThrnoBNw&hl=fr&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=7&ct=result)

(255) The appropriate role of the Jewish community towards black civil rights activism was not a simple matter, Hertzberg contended, and although one hazarded being labeled "a white 'Uncle Tom' " if one was "anything less than vocally doctrinaire" in support of the black freedom struggle, nonetheless, "this danger must be risked". (books.google.ca/books?id=8E6L3 _ 8t2YkC&pg=PA94&lpg=P A94&dq=% 22hazarded+being%22&source=web&ots=SF7QCkMju&sig=06gUkQNfU GhfY2 y cP2 _ HVFfoXU &hl=fr&sa= X&oi=book _ result&resnum=4&ct=resu lt)

82

the events being reproached and being labelled are situated at a future point in time with

respect to the performance of the hazardous deed. Simultaneity effects are also _ observed

when hazard is followed by a gerund-participle, as in the context below below:

(256) Where you really noticed a difference was with the starters: the lamb chops, while delicious, were a little dry and tough, as was the chicken. Surprisingly, l'd hazard saying it was the fish tikka which held up best. l'd still prefer to eat from the menu though! (eatingleeds.co.ukJ2007/12/aagrah-and-pizza-express.html)

Here, the event saying is felt to coincide in time with that expressed by the matrix.

With regard to control, the infinitive and the gerund-participle both show constant

subject control readings with hazard as the main verb, Le. the latter' s subject is always

understood to be the actual realizer of the complement' s event, as in aIl of the uses quoted

so far~


The to-infinitive following the verb hazard, as in (257) below, does not play the role

of direct object, as it does not correspond to 'that which is hazarded':

(257) Few have hazarded to say such nonsense to the judge.

This is confirmed by the fact that it cannot be paraphrased by me ans of a passive

construction in which it fills the role of subject:

(258) * To say such nonsense has been hazarded by few.

It is also impossible to substitute the to-infinitive by a direct object pronoun, as the

following illustrate:

(259) ~ Few have hazarded it/that.

83

(260) Few have hazarded to.

To is the preferred preposition for anaphoric reference in such cases. Finally, pseudo

clefting does not work very weIl either:

(261) * What few have hazarded is to say such nonsense.

(262) * To say such nonsense is what few have hazarded.

We therefore argue here that the infmitive with hazard, as with venture and adventure

above, acts as an adverbial result specifier. Consequently, the to-infinitive denotes the

result of 'going forward and actualizing a hazardous event' .

The gerund-participle following the verb hazard, on the other hand, does function as

the direct object of the matrix, and this is true whether the complement represents a

potential hazard or a hazardous deed. Thus, in the following, the -ing corresponds to 'that

which is hazarded':

(263) Few fish will hazard getting eaten by an anemone simply for the chance to snack on the crab. (reefkeeping.comlissues/2004-08/reefslides/index.php)

(264) Many of them, though the land was not open to settlement until the first of June, hazarded getting across the river early in the spring and squatting on the land. (iagenweb.org/boards/clayton/biographies/index.cgi?rev=63 798)

This function is confirmerl by the test ofpassivization:

(265) Getting eaten by an anemone will be hazarded by few fish.

(266) Getting across the river was hazarded by many of them.

Pronoun substitution and pseudo-clefting also yield grammatical results:

(267) Few fish will hazard that.

(268) Many ofthem hazarded it.

84

(269) What few fish will hazard is getting eaten by an anemone.

(270) Getting across the river was what many of them hazarded.


Now that we have looked at the different parameters in play, we can propose an

explanation for temporal and control effects with the verb hazard. As regards temporality

when the matrix is followed by an infinitival complement, an effect of result-type

subsequence was constantly observed in our corpus. The relationship felt between the two

verbs is of the same type as that observed with the verbs venture, adventure and manage. In "

3.5.1, we argued that the meaning of hazard is 'to go ahead and actualize a hazardous

event', and we also pointed out the subject's hesitation to do so: overcoming this prior

phase of hesitation before going forward to perform the infinitive's event constitutes a pre

condition to the actualization of that event. The following examples illustrate this relation

more clearly:

(271) So 1 hazarded to go to Puncher's home, hoping that 1 would meet ·my heart's desire, bent over a basin ofwashing, singing the familiar Christmas carol. (http://books.google.ca/books?id= V9CxNcAPqvoC&pg:=;::P A3 7 &lpg=P A3 7 &dq=%22hazarded+to+go%22&source=web&ots=g6gN5D4EPc&sig=n7H wdHcOHzOTNwvxwnFtldwBGMO&hl=fr&sa=X&oi=book result&resnum =3&ct=result)

(272) So 1 went to Puncher's home, hoping that 1 would me et my heart's desire, bent over a basin of washing, singing the familiar Christmas carol.

In (271), the hazarding is conceived as a movement in time leading to the actualizationof

the going: after overcoming bis hesitation, the subject finally went ahead and actually

realized the hazardous event of going to Puncher's home. This impression of a prior phase

of overcoming hesitation is totally absent from (272). In aIl uses of hazard ~ to-infinitive

found in our corpus, the movement signified by to is always completed, thus giving rise to

the impression of a result. Thus, the meaning of hazard, combined with the meaning of the

to-infinitive and its function, can explain the constant temporal impression of result-type

subsequence observed in our corpus.

85

On the other hand, when the gerund-participle is used with hazard, our observations

show that temporal effects of simultaneity or· subsequence are both possible, as is the case

with the verb risk. As argued earlier, the gerund-participle has the function of direct object

in the uses observed, identifying 'that which is hazarded'. Since the direct object relation to

the main verb is basically non-temporal and the -ing simply evokes the event in a holistic

way, any temporal relationship between the main verb and its complement is due ta the

meaning of the transitive verb. When the impression felt between hazard and the gerund

participle's event is that of subsequence, the latter al ways evokes a potential hazard. When

this is the case, as in example (265) above, the subject faces a possible unwanted

consequence. It is thus logical that the gerund-participle evokes its event as future vis-à-vis

the main verb, this possible hazard not having been actualized yet. As for the impression of

simultaneity, the verb hazard always means 'to perform a hazardous deed' in this case.

This is easily explainable by the fact that if you hazard doing something which could bring

harm upon you, the hazarding and the hazardous deed necessarily coincide in time: the

hazarding is indeed the very performance of that deed. This correlation between the actual

meaning of hazard and that of its complement, being either HARM or DEED, is consistent

with what was observed for the verb risk.

When comparing the respective occurrences of the to-infinitive and the gerund

participle with hazard, it is interesting to observe that sorne verbs can occur with both types

of complement:

(273) They censor, they edit, they constrict, the y limit without anybody telljng them what ta do. That is the nature of the business and 1 would hazard ta say that it always has been. ( www.mastemewmedia.org/2005/05/23/the_future_of_news_is.htm)

(274) Where you really noticed a difference was with the starters: the lamb chops, while delicious, were a little dry and tough, as wàs the chicken. Surprisingly, l' d hazard saying it was the fish tikka which held up best. l' d still prefer to eat from the menu though! (eatingleeds.co. uk/2007 /12/aagrah-and-pizza-express.html)

In bath examples, the event represented by the complement is actually realized and

corresporlds ta the raIe of risky deed. The difference in meaning resides here merely in a

86

difference in construal on the part of the speaker. In example (273) with the to-infinitive,

there is a movement implied between the hazarding and the saying, and a before/after

relation is represented between the two. However, with the gerund-participle, the main

verb's event and that of the complement are simultaneous in time, with the verb hazard,

being conceived as meaning 'to perform a hazardous deed'. The possible use of both

hazard + to + say and hazard + saying is attributable to the speaker' s ability to

conceptualise a given situation in different ways (cf. Langacker 1987: 38-40). This is

because hazarding is conceived as leading to the actualization of the infinitive's event due

to the meaning of to. An -ing direct object, on the other hand, corresponding to 'that which

is hazarded', can denote either the DEED hazarded (i.e. performed hy an act of hazarding)

or the HARM hazarded (i.e. faced as a possible hazard). Moreover, our corpus

demonstrates that the to-infinitive can only represent a hazardous deed with the verb

hazard; it can not evoke a possible hazard or harm. The gerund-participle can however

correspond ta both of these meanings, and can thus give rise to two different temporal

interpretations.

With regard to control, we saw that the verb hazard produces constant subject

control with both types of complement. This impression is again due to the interactions

between the · three parameters of meaning involved in this type of construction. For

instance, in (275) hazard implies a movement towards the result represented by the

infinitive and to acts as the link between the main verb and say, this latter being the

terminal point to which this movement leads. It is therefore logical that the realizer of

'going forward and actualizing a hazardous deed' is necessarily coreferential with that of

the complement' s event (i.e. the hazardous deed). Similarly, when the gerund-participle

evokes a hazardous deed, the same logical implication prevails. In this meaning of hazard,

one hazards something by actuaHy performing it. When the meaning ofhazard is 'to face a

potential hazard', as in 1 hazarded being thought ostentatious, the one who hazards is

understood as the one who may bring down upon themselves the consequence expressed by

the complement. In aH the cases attested thus far, subject control has been observed (i.e. the

hazarding is conceived as potentially thrusting the hazarder into the realization of an

87

unwanted event). Given the uses found with risk of the type (401) and (402), however, one

must remain open to the possibility ofnon-subject control readings with this construction.

3.6 THE VERB CHANCE


The verb chance, as a verb expressing risk, is always occurring with the gerund

participle in our corpus. Only one example of chance was found in the BNe; all the others

were gathered from a search on the Internet7• In total, our corpus comprises a little more

than one hundred occurrences. When construed with the gerund-participle, chance can have

two different meanings. In almost aIl cases (90% of the total), the meaning of chance is

very similar to that of the verb risk, 'to perform a risky deed'. In the following examples,

chance corresponds to the Oxford Advanced Learners' Dictionary 's definition, 'to risk

something, although you know the results may not be successful' (p. 243):

(275) Based on reviews, 1 chanced requesting Room 55, and it was available for four of the five nights we wanted. The fifth night was in room 25. (www.tripadvisor.comlShowUserReviews-gI87147-d233585-r5804585-Duquesne_Eiffel_Hotel-Paris_lle_de_France.html)

(276) When our food came, it was only luke wann. We chanced eating it and hoped we wouldn't get sick. It tasted ok. (newyork.citysearch.com/review/11279692)

(277) "Finny?" 1 chanced calling out his name, and prepared myself for the bitter reply. "Go to bed, Gene," he yawned. "You're going to owe me big tomorrow." 1 couldn't help but smile, a slow, goofy looking thing that carried me through the night and into the morning. 1 was forgiven. (www.fanfiction.netis/3834390/1/A_Separate_Belief)

7 For chance, in addition to our group of selected verbs (be, have, go, gel and say), we also looked at over 75 other verbs possibly used in combination with it. For the other verbs examined in this study, we had to limit our search to the fifst group of selected verbs because of time and space constraints. For frequency comparison with other verbs, examples of chance construed with be, have, go, gel, and say were collected.

88

Thus, in the cases above, chance me ans 'to perform a chancy deed', the complement

representing the deed in question. The possible unwanted consequence is normally not

mentioned although it can usually be deduced from the context. It is however explicit in

example (279), where the possible harm is a 'bitter reply'. While risk in its sense of 'to

perfonn a risky deed' often entails a possible tragic or serious outcome, in a good number

of cases with chance the possible consequences often seem trivial or of a less important

nature. This is the case in examples (280) and (281) below, where the possible harm

corresponds merely to getting a negative answer, and in (282) where the subjects run the

risk of getting caught in the rain without their raincoats:

(278) The show was great and we went for a few drinks after. Arriving back at the flat, 1 chanced asking him in again. This time 1 kept my eyes on his face. We had a few more drinks and our confidence was high, so high we drifted towards the bedroom. ( www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclare/literature/ncww/smell_of_incense.htm )

(279) With my warranty on THIS unit about to run out on August 7, 2004, 1 chanced calling up Garmin Tech Support to see if they would send me a brand new unit (charged to my credit card) and then refund this amount when they received the one 1 currently posseSSe ( www.pdastreet.comlforums/ archi ve/index. php/t -45 981.html)

(280) Mom and Dad drove to our house, loaded up my bike, and the three of us drove to the trailhead in Big Rapids where Dad and 1 began our journey. Since it had rained an morning we brought along our raincoats but seeing clear skies in the north, we chanced leaving them in the car. (havybeaks.vox.comllibrary/posts/tags/cyclingl)

However, with risk, the consequences of perfonning a chancy deed may often tum tragic as

in (281) below:

(281) After what happened to Flavia, he would never have risked injecting illegal penicillin into you. (BNC: FSC 1009)

With the verb chance, as its lexical context would imply, events are represented as being

left ta chance, the subject showing a particular trusting to luck, as mentioned by Webster 's

New Dictionary of Synonyms: "chance may suggest a trusting to luck and a sometimes

89

irresponsible disregarding of the risks involved in an action or procedure" (p. 857). The

following examples are very interesting for their explicit references to luck:

(282) At the airport, there were the typicallarge queues and chaos associated with retum charter flights home, but 1 awaited my turn in line and chanced requesting an aisle seat. Finally, sorne luck ... "No problem sir". (www.travbuddy.comIDont-stay-the-Birmar-2-Hotel-v6362)

(283) 1 chanced flying us in on the day of the cruise last time and the only hiccup we had was her luggage getting left at another airport. Luckily we still had plenty of time and the luggage was on the next flight in. (www.cruisemates.comlforum/viewtopic.php?p=3590255)

(284) So as if the flu-related symptoms weren~t enough, 1 chanced eating a Weis bar last week, which for someone with a citrus allergy, is like playing Russian Roulette with an automatic. (www.tasteslikedrunk.com/)

(285) The baby was getting heavy in her anns, but she looked to be asleep and Laura chanced putting her back into her crib, fully ready to rock her sorne more if she protested. She was in luck though, Isis hit the mattress and didn't stir. ( www.survivalinstinct.netlviewstory . php ?sid=3 3 5&chapter= 1 )

(286) Of course, 1 am now fairly weIl versed on it, including the need ta report when 1 return to the states. 1 guess 1 could have chanced slipping out and back, but with my luck on stuff .. .I'd be writing this from a prison computer. ( www.cruisersforum.comlforums/f57 /cruising-decal-kindred-v-i-n-14061.html)

Examples of this type constitute 10% of our corpus.

A handful of exarnples were also found to have a sirnilar meaning to the verb risk

when it means 'to face a potential hann'. In the occurrences below, chance means 'to take

the chance of sorne harm coming to oneself:

(287) Everywhere you moved there was artillery coming in the trenches and outside the trenches. Anywhere you rnoved you chanced getting your head blown off. (www.robertbarfield.comlaffldavits.htrnl)

(288) "When is he going ta stop," Vicki asked, "Just by doing this he chanced setting the entire forest on flre as weIl as the other tents." (www.hardydetectiveagency.comlvictoriaitruecourage/truecourageIO.htm)

90

(289) She looked so pathetic and sounded so distraught, 1 chanced upsetting her and strung both arms around her and soft-talked. "Hey, take as long as you like, baby. l'm not going anywhere. ru just freshen up then come back down and admire aU that poorly displayed until you rejoined me, okay?" (books.google.ca/books?id=8EciiBPV GZsC&pg=P A 13&lpg=P A 13&dq=% 22chaced+upsetting%22&source=web&ots= JezjoR TPF A&sig=as2cE2FOQr Xern6pGzy-EQ-C6xTs&hl=fr)

(290) There was no way Henry could get off the roof safely. If he jumped, he chanced hreaking a leg or worse from that height. (books.google.ca/books?id=66bqvMPCJ2AC&pg=P A207 &lpg=P A207 &dq =%22chanced+hreaking%22&source=web&ots=NOsvf2FUvZ&sig=gIOMrn6gNJ8SIDOVZpzxKoGLKqrn8&hl=fr)

In these uses where the gerund-participle represents HARM, i.e. a possible unwanted · or

unfortunate consequence, chance could he replaced by the- verb risk without much

difference in rneaning. However, in sorne cases, less certainty about the actual realization of

the consequence is felt than with the verb risk. This squares weU with one sense of the noun

chance, which is that of a mere unpleasant or dangerous possibility: since with the verb

chance there is a sense of the harm being a mere possibility, the outcorne may also be

favourable to the chancer. Expressions like 'by any chance', 'no chance', 'the chances

are ... ' and 'take chances' aU refer to the notion of a possibility. It is also interesting to note

that with the verb chance we observe the reverse of risk: most examples with chance have

the DEED-type of meaning, while with risk the HARM-type is the most frequent sense.

Finally, it is not rare to find the verb chance construed with a to-infinitive, as in the

following:

(291) Driving home over a high mountain pass one winter day, Wyoming artist Mel FiUerup chanced to see two moose trotting through an aspen forest, lifting their long legs high through the deep snow. (CPLQ: American Artist)

(292) He was the sort of boy who always had a stick in rus hand unless he chanced to have a stone. (CPLQ: The Magazine of Fantasy and Wild Thing)

However, in this construction, chance has the meaning of "to happen or come about

accidentally" (Hayakama 1996: 59). Since in these examples chance does not carry an

element ofrisk in its meaning, they do not faH within the purvey ofthis study.

91


The most frequent temporal relationship between the matrix chance and the gerund

participle in our corpus is that of simultaneity. In this type of examples, chance always

means 'to perform a chancy deed', as in examples (275)-(280) and (282)-(286) above. A

few examples were also found where the relationship between the main verb and the

complement's event is one of subsequence. These examples aH correspond to chance

meaning 'to take the chance of sorne harm coming to oneself, as in (287)-(290). In this

type of use, the complement' s event is always future and non-realized.

As regards the type of control relationship holding between the verb chance and the

-ing as complement, subject control is always observed in our corpus. For instance, in (289)

and (290) above, the subject of the matrix is understood to be the actual realizer of the

event represented by the gerund-participle.


As with the other verbs examined in this study, the gerund-participle functions as

direct object of the verb chance. It fulfills the semantic criterion for this function, as it

corresponds to 'that which is chanced':

(293) The ammunition was running so low that few commanders chanced sending out men on horseback.

(294) Only imbeciles would chance setting the entire forest on fire.

Substitution of the -ing by a direct object pronoun, pseudo-cleft constructions and

passivization are aIl possible, as the following examples illustrate;

(295) Few commanders chanced it/that.

(296) Only imbeciles would chance it/that.

(297) What few commanders chanced was sending out men on horseback.

92

(298) Setting the entire forest on fire is what only imbeciles would chance.

(299) Sending out men on horseback :was chanced by few commanders.

(300) Setting the entire forest on fire would be chanced by only imbeciles.


The explanatory framework applied in this .study can account for the temporal and

control effects observed between the verb chance and its complement quite readily. As with

risk and hazard, temporal effects of simultaneity and subseguence are both possible with

chance. As explained earlier, with the -ing as complement, any temporal relationship

between this latter and the matrix is due to the lexical meaning ofthis matrix. As with risk

and hazard, a correlation was observed between the temporal effect of simultaneity and the

meaning of chance as 'performing a chancy deed'. When chance has this meaning, the

chancing and the performance of the risky deed always coincide in time. It is simply logical

that, if you perform (i.e. chance) an event which could possibly have an unfortunate

outcome (i.e. a chancy deed), the chancing and the actualization of the chancy deed occur at

the same time. On the other hand, when the temporal impression between chance and the

gerund-participle is that of subsequence, the latter always evokes sorne kind of possible

harm, as in example (292). Here, chance means 'to take the chance of sorne harm coming

to oneself, and it is necessarily the case that the -ing 's event is evoked as unrealized in

relation to the occurrence of the main verb. Indeed, this harm is only a possibility,

something which may come to realization only after the subject 'takes a chance'.

The control readings obtained with the verb chance are also explainable by the semantic

content of the latter. ~en the gerund-participle evokes a risky deed, one chances tbis deed

by actually performing it. This naturally entails that the subject 'of the matrix is the same

entity who realizes the complement's event. In the second meaning of chance, chancing is

conceived as doing something which could potentially bring the harm represented by the -

ing down upon the chancer's head. Thus, the one who chances is logically understood as

the one who may eventually be affected by the consequence expressed by the gerund-

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participle. In aH the uses found in our corpus, chancing is conceived as potentially making

the chancer the realizer of an undesirable event. Theoretically, however, there would seern

to be no sernantic obstacle to the harrn being conceived as something actualized by sorne

other entity, as with risk in (401) and (402).

3.7 THE VERB DARE


The verb dare always occurs with the to-infinitive in our corpus.8 371 examples of

this verb were found, with the rnajority of them corning from the BNC and only a handful

from LOB and other sources. No examples of dare + gerund-participle were found at all.

As regards the lexical meaning of dare, dictionaries put the emphasis on the subject' s

courage, bravery or boldness. Webster 's Third describes dare as "to have the bravery,

boldness, or fortitude to contend against, venture, or try" (p. 574). Another definition is "to

be brave enough to do something" (Oxford Learner's Dictionary, p. 385). Corpus data

confirm that the verb dare involves a special note of courage or bravery in its semantics.

We propose that the meaning of dare when followed by a to-infinitive is in most cases 'to

bravely go ahead and perform a risky deed'. This is illustrated in the following:

(301) Last week a Resident of Mere was moaning because a squirrel had dared to eat nuts from a tree in her garden. (LOB: B27 49)

(302) When at last he dared to creep from his hiding-place and move on tip-toe up the dark stairs, he had counted to 372 and managed to convince himself that any fate was preferable to having an accident down there amongst the coats. (BNC: ACW 1619)

(303) Now, an anonymous female member of the Saudi Royal Family has dared to speak out about the reality of life for wornen in Saudi Arabia. (BNC: CJP 402)

8 Note that the verb dare also occurs followed with a bare infmitive. In this case however, dare behaves as a modal. As we are onJy concemed with verbs followed directly by a gerund ... participle or a to-infmitive here, we did not consider this type ofuse. For a detailed account of dare used as a modal, cf. Duffley (1994).

94

(304) As late as the 1180s, St Hugh of Lincoln dared to tease Henry II of England about the tanner's blood in his veins. (BNe: EA7 218)

(305) When Vigier de la Rousselle dared to advocate the continuation of appeals to Paris in 1312, the whole matter was taken up in a very political way by the authorities in Bordeaux, who accused Vigier of contempt- of ducal authority and had him executed on a charge which was, in effect, that of treason. (BNe: EDF 1119)

In these examples, the subject went ahead and did something audacious or which required

courage. In sorne cases, sorne kind of effrontery on the part of the subject may even be felt,

as in (305) and (308). In Fillmore & Atkins' terminology, the to-infinitive always

represents DEED, that is sornething which the subject does and which may have sorne

unfortunate or unwanted consequences. Thus, with dare, the elernent of risk common to the

verbs studied here is present in the guise of the possible consequences involved in

performing a risky deed. The following examples are interesting because the risk which is

run by the subject is explicitly mentioned:

(306) Any vines that dare to lean against this tree risk being vigorously chewed. (BNe 323)

(307) This was as near as they dared to approach to avoid the risk of fire damage to the vehicles. (BNe: HJD 1426)

(308) He gives ya quality gear but he don't take no shit, and if you dare to call hirn Mister he rnightjust shoot your crawly ass off. (BNe: HWX 2274)

(309) A newspaper that dared to carry articles critical of the Barisan now faces a ban in Sarawak. (BNC: G33 2072)

Cornpared to the verb risk, dare puts special ernphasis on courage or boldness, an idea

which does not seein prominent with risk, although it can be irnplied in sorne cases. With

the verb dare, it is precisely because there is a risk involved in the realization of sorne

daring deed that courage is required. This ernphasis on boldness is especially obvious in

exarnples where dare is state-like:

95

(310) He dared to be a Christian, in a country which had supplanted religion with a political ideal, discouraging worship without actually suppressing it forcibly. (BNC: CDA 643)

(311) Against that background, does the Prime Minister still dare to say to those people and their families that their prolonged misery is a price well worth paying? (BNC: HHV 19818)

(312) Dare to put in such an offer? (BNC: HHV 19818)

In these examples, the verb dare means 'to possess enough courage to go ahead and

perfonn a risky deed'. For instance, (312) could be paraphrased as Do you gave the guts to

put in such an offer? These cases where dare has a state-like quality are however rare in

our corpus ..

It is also interesting to see that the adverb hardly is sometimes used between the

subject and the main verb in our corpus:

(313) It had only two doors and by the time they had been pushed roughly into the back, with the Woman leaning round in the front seat to point the srnall gun at thern, they hardly dared to breathe. (BNC: AC4 3049)

(314) Is it because one does not turn to art for cornfort? For safety? Because if you want comfort and safety you keep well away frorn art? ,From real art? y ou only tum to it as people clirnb mountains and cross deserts to find out what you are made ofby doing what you hardly dare to do. (BNC: H08 686)

The use of hardly in the sentences above brings out the fact that there is great difficulty

involved in performing sorne deed; it also highlights the need for the subject to draw on bis

courage.

The special emphasis on boldness or bravery with dare cornes out even more clearly

in comparison to the verb venture. In sorne exarnples, venture can be replaced by dare

without much change in rneaning, vice versa:

(315) There are those who even dare to say that we should intervene rnilitarily and hope that sorne form of peace will come about as a result. (BNC: HHX 11410)

96

The similarity between dare and venture is not surprising considering that the meaning of

venture, 'to go forward hesitantly into unknown territory', implicitly requires courage.

However, the fact that most examples of dare + to-infmitive cannot be rèplaced by venture

is revealing of the se verbs' lexical meaning:

(316) Most people hate Harry but they don't dare to say so (CC: 410)

(317) ? Most people hate Harry but they don't venture to say so.

Example (317) sounds somewhat awkward with the verb venture because dare puts

emphasis on courage, something which is not at the forefront in the semantics of venture.

This element of meaning is however required by the context in (316).

As to the verbs with which the verb dare can be construed, they are quite varied

overall. We pointed out the fact in 3.4.1 that venture has a natural affmity with verbs of

linguistic expression which represent 55% of aU occurrences. Dare was also found to occur

frequently with this type of verbs in our corpus: there are 105 examples of this type in the

BNC (28% of aIl occurrences):

(318) No one else dares to speak to the Lady Prioress like that. (BNC: H9C 1647)

(319) He dared to criticise the leader outright. (BNC: CGO 145)

(320) It was nearly a week before Ingrid dared to ask for a transfer to the officer's mess. (BNe: FPX 821)

(321) The only outlet through which we dared to express our distress was sharing our fantasies ofburning down our school! (BNC: CF4 739)

The possible consequences faced by the subject in these examples are the same as those

with the verb venture, i.e. rejection, rebuff or censure.

Another important observation with respect to the verbs found in combination with

dare is that the latter is often construed with verbs such as think, believe, reflect, hope,

97

imagine, dream, conceive, predict and expect, which represent Il % of aU uses in the BNC.

This is illustrated in the examples below:

(322) He didn't as yet quite dare ta imagine himself as a real artist. (BNC: CBN 295)

(323) Lots of love, Alexander. Lisa stared at the message for a long, long time, trying ta stifle the sudden swift beat of her heart. Perhaps l've been wrong about him, after aIl! Perhaps there was no deception! She actually dared ta think it. And suddenly the emotions that went tearing through her were sa terrifying, sa cataclysmic, that she had ta thrust them from her. If she had been wrong about him? If he had not deceived her? At the thought she felt her heart unfold withjoy within her. Then she stopped herselfshort. (BNC: H97 3854)

In (322), the verb dare seems fitting because it requires audacity for sorne people ta

imagine themselves as artists. In (323), the subject is tom between her love for Alexander

and a feeling ofbetrayal- it takes courage for her ta think that she has not been deceived.

We also observed a frequent occurrence ofnegation with the verb dare, as in (322)

above for instance. This is the case for 105 examples, which represents more or less 25% of

the corpus. The high occurrence of negation is something peculiar ta dare in the entire

corpus, as this type of use was relatively marginal for the other verbs studied. Negation is

perhaps frequent with dare because of this verb's emphasis on courage or boldness. It

indeed seems common to say that someone does not have the courage to do something. The

verb dare is also the only one for which we found occurrences of imperatives and rhetorical

questions, as in the following:

(324) Dare to tell me that you see nothing there of him, that you have no feeling for the strokes of your hands, that you have no will in you to venture after him! (BNC: K8S 1757)

(325) You dare ta answer me so? shrilled Matilda. (BNC: HH1 793)

In (324), the speaker is basicaUy inciting his interlocutor ta exercise bis courage and to go

ahead and tell him something. In (325), we observe a rhetorical question which is in fact an

98

indirect speech act; the speaker implies that the person she is talking to should not have

dared to answer her SO.9


In all of the examples with the verb dare, the to-infinitive complement' s event is felt

to be subsequent with respect to that of the main verb. In most cases, the event evoked by

the infinitive is actually accomplished, as in:

(326) He had dared to slaughter a sacred cow. (BNC: ADB 638)

Here the infinitive's event is the result of 'bravely going ahead and performing a risky

deed'. In sorne cases however, one gets the impression that the event represented by the

complement is non-realized, as the following example illustrates:

(327) This was the band's first gig ever, and Bemadette's first time ever drumming on stage. They had rehearsed only a few times. But Bernadette thought she still dared to do the experiment, as a lifetime of piano playing had taught her about rhythm (dear.kitty.blogsome.com/2006/12/1 01)

It is very rare however to find the to-infinitive's event as non-realized with the verb dare:

the only clear attested case is in (327), where we are under the impression that the subject

possesses enough courage to perform the daring but that he has not done it yet.

With respect to the type of control relationship felt to exist between the verb dare

and the to-infinitive, we observed constant subject control in all cases in the corpus. For

instance, in (326) above, the understood subject of the complement corresponds to that of

the main verb, i.e. he.

9 In Israel (1996) the author argues that "Rhetorical questions can be understood as a species of indirect speech act in which a speaker, by superficially and insincerely requesting information, actually conveys a very defmite opinion" (pp. 634-635), a position which we share.

---- - - - - - --- - - -- - - - - - ----'

99


The function of the to-infinitive with respect to the verb dare is that of an adverbial

result specifier denoting the result of 'to bravely go ahead and perform a risky deed' .10 First

of aU, in the two sentences below:

(328) But above aIl, sorne ferninists have dared to question the rnonolithic status of language itself, its clairns to neutrality and to absolute truth. (BNC: CGF 1534)

(329) AIl was quiet, but only five ofus had dared to come. (BNC: B2E 1196)

to question and to come do not correspond to 'that which is dared'. Moreover, the infinitive

does not pass the tests for the function of direct object, as the following exarnples illustrate:

(330) * To question the monolithic status of language itselfhas been dared by sorne ferninists.

(331) * To come had been dared by only five of us.

(332) * What sorne ferninists have dared was to question the rnonolithic status of language itself.

(333) * To come is what only five ofus had dared.

(334) * Sorne ferninists/few foreign aid workers have dared thatlit.

(335) * Only five of us had dared thatlit.

(336) Sorne ferninists/few foreign aid workers have dared to.

(337) Only five ofus had dared to.

Thus, neither passivization, pseudo-cleft constructions nor substitution by rneans of a

pronoun are possible with the to-infinitive following dare. Examples (336) and (337)

dernonstrate that the preposition to is the preferred option for substitution.

10 Note that, with the rare stative-like uses of dare, the infmitival complement functions as an adverbial specifier denoting the goal of "to possess enough courage to go ahead and perform a risk deed".

100


The pieces are now in place for us to propose an explanation for the temporal and

control interpretations observed when the verb dare is used with a to-infinitive following it

directly. With regard to temporality, an effect of subsequence was constantly obsetved. The

explanation for this is similar to that proposed for the verbs venture, adventure and hazard.

The meaning of dare is, in the majority of cases, 'to bravely go ahead and perform a risky

deed', and we pointed out the necessity for the subject to exercise courage to do so. In fact,

boldness or courage is a kind of pre-condition that must be 'checked' before going forward

and actualizing the daring; the possession of this quality by the subject is necessary for the

accomplishment of the event represented by the bare stem. This impression ofdare being a

prior condition implies a before/after relationship in time between dare in its action-like

sense and the complement's event. The impression of subsequence is even more obvious in

the state-like sense of dare, as in example (327) above: here the infinitive's event is

understood ta be future and unrealized at the point in time corresponding to the possession

of the courage to go ahead and actualize sorne deed, the infmitive's event.

It may also be interesting to address the reasons why the verb dare is never found to

occur with a gerund-participle. Since courage is a pre-condition which is necessary in order

for the subject to go ahead and actualise the complement' s event, this entails a necessary

before/after relation between the matrix and its complement. This type of relation is not

expressed by the direct object. A temporal relationship of subsequence is sometimes

observed with the -ing but this is not due ta the conceptualization of a movement through

time from the matrix verb's event to the complement's; it is merely a by-product of the

interaction of the function of direct object with the meaning of the main verb.

With regard to control, dare always produces subject control with an infinitival .

complement. This control effect is the logical product of the interactions between the three

explanatory parameters. For instance, in (329), dare implies a movement of the darer

towards the result represented by the infinitive; this notion of the darer' s movement is

explicitly expressed by the preposition to, so that the actualization of the infinitive' s event

101

is understood to be the tenninal point to which the daring brings the darer. It is therefore

natural that the realizer of the daring is understood to be the same as that of the

complement's event.

3.8 THE VERB FACE


The verb face is always found with the gerund-participle in the corpus. In total,

almost 100 examples were considered, with 21 coming from the BNC, 74 from CPI.Q, and

the rest from other sources. No examples offace + to-infinitive were found. As regards the

lexical meaning of the verb face, dictionaries bring out the notion of 'being up against a

difficult situation'. The Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English describes face as "if

you face or are faced with a difficult situation, or if a difficult situation faces you, it is

going to affect you and you must de al with it" (p. 559). Webster 's Third defines it as "to

recognize or contemplate as an often unpleasant or difficult eventuality confronting one"

(p. 812). Besides risks, the subject can also face challenge or a prospect, as the following

show:

(338) Roberts faces greater risk after seizure. (www.usatoday.comlnews/health/2007-07-31-Roberts_N.htm)

(339) But as parents, the Nanaimo couple face a challenge that will mount as Helena grows up: the fact that providing a loving home for their child is not enough. (www.canada.comlvictoriatimescolonistlnews/story.html?id=5c9a6b2a-2360-4 789-8c32-5c 151 t29ab8c)

(340) Contractors working in Iraq could soon face the prospect of operating in a war zone with no guarantee of immunity from locallaws. (www.govexec.comldailyfed/0808/082508rb1.htm )

This shows that the idea of risk is not part of face 's meaning per se; it can however be part

of the message conveyed, depending on what kind of complement follows face. With the

102

gerund-participle as complement, the idea of risk cornes into the picture if what is faced by

the subject is a possible harm. If it corresponds merely to a prospect or a challenge, there is

no trace of this notion in the message expressed:

(341 ) DAY 1: 1 take one last look at my kitchen of the last 12 years. Can 1 really face going through breakfasts from the food truck and barbecue "dinners for the next three weeks? It took two men exactly two ho urs to dismantle the place. Oyen, cook top, and old Sub-Zero fridge are on the front lawn waiting for Goodwill to pick up (CPI.Q: House Beautiful)

(342) ln the future, as people live longer, more of us will face living with a disability. Fortunately, new technologies and new attitudes will make the future more enabling for us aIl. (CPI.Q: The Futurist)

A good number of -ing complements were found however which did denote sorne form of

harm:

(343) Under that scheme, owners who face being made homeless due to mortgage arrears are allowed to stay in their homes as tenants for 12 months as the council takes up a head lease. (BNC: K97 4014)

(344) Ifthey don't, they face having their caravans towed away. (BNC: K28 236)

(345) Thanks to innovative approaches to animal control, fewer strays face going to the pound. (CPI.Q: Country Living)

(346) U sers face losing negotiated discounts on Microsoft software if the US Department of Justice divides the software giant into two or more companies. (CPI.Q: Computer Weekly)

(347) THE blue-suited salaryman is having a rough time. He faces being fired or demoted. Worse, he is losing the respect of his family. (CPI.Q: The Economist)

The meaning of the verb face here is something like 'not tum away from' or 'be ready to

me et face-to-face without withdrawing'. This meaning is compatible with a direct object.

As one would expect, the idea of being in a situation where one knows one is going to meet

face-to-face with something that could possibly cause withdrawal only makes sense with a

gerund-participle expressing HARM. The latter can not express DEED, because what is

faced cannot be construed as a risky deed performed by an act of facing. Neither can it be a

· 103

V ALUED OBJECT, as something faced is not conceivable as sornething which the 'facer'

is putting at risk by the act of facing it.

Whenface is followed by an -ing evoking a potential harm, sorne kind offate often

seerns to be involved, as if the subject cannot exercise free will, but rather is up against the

possibility of an unpleasant situation over which he has no or very little control:

(348) Lucy has lost an eye, lost her father and now she faces losing her dearest friends. (BNC: CH6 3717)

(349) An elderly St. John's couple who faced being split apart because the husband is being admitted to a veterans' pavilion has been granted a reprieve. (CPI.Q: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)

(350) Sorne of Britain's top insurance cornpanies face going bust if the recession goes on, an expert wamed yesterday. (BNC: CH2 805)

(351) Politicians and those lobbying for aid to the more than 3,000 fishery workers who face losing their jobs often compare the lack of fish in the sea with a drought in Western Canada. (CPI.Q: Globe & Mail)

Indeed, in the majority of cases, the circumstances leading to the subject facing sorne

unpleasant event are outside of his control. These circumstances are made explicit in

example (349)-(351), in which a condition/consequence relation is perceivable: for

instance, in (351) a recession would, as a consequence, cause sorne of Britain' stop

insurance companies to go bust. The verb face seems here to evoke a merely future event

(which is not to the subject' s advantage or liking) that the person can see coming. The

impression of lack of control on the part of the subject observed with face is a peculiar

characteristic of this verb which is not felt with risk, chance and hazard: in rnost cases with

these three verbs, the subject still has sorne control or responsibility over the situation, the

potential harm often being a result of one' s own actions:

(352) Those individuals that worked above or below these groups norms risked being ostracised by their fellow workers. (BNe: GVN 431)

(353) "When is he going to stop," Vicki asked, "Just by doing tbis he chanced setting the entire forest on fire as weIl as the other tents."

104

( www.hardydetectiveagency.comlvictorialtruecourage/truecouragel0.htm )

(354) To simply enjoy himself and his life, without constantly toning himself down and checking the depressive pulse of others, meant he hazarded being seen as a traitorous villain and, as a consequence, ending up in total isolation. (books.google.ca/books?id=HvJiENaRUMC&pg=PA303&lpg=PA303&dq= %22hazarded+being%22&source~eb&ots=fPNkIibfDC&sig=xeGAU2mnj

abH7rbPbvt8jhidAOY &hl=fr&sa= X&oi=book _result&resnum=2&ct=result #PPA304,Ml)

However, in a few cases with the verb face + gerund-participle, the subject's being

up against the prospect of sorne possible hann may be due to sornething under his control:

(355) The 47-year-old consultant now faces being struck off the Medical Register for attempting to murder a tenninally-ill patient. (BNC: CH2 6802)

(356) The 78 women at Avdel Systems in Welwyn Garden City, Herts said, they 1 faced losing 20 per cent oftheir pensions if the y retired at 60.

(BNC: CEN 444)

These examples are interesting because the context gives the reason for the subject facing

potential hann. In (356) for instance, retirement at 60 is a condition which leads to the loss

of 20 percent of the pensions. What is being faced is a consequence of a condition, but the

subjects in (355) &Ild (356) would like not to have to face these consequences.

As for the verbs used as cOp1plements of face, out of the 21 examples from the

BNC, 9 are construed with lose, 8 with be, 2 with have, 1 with give, 1 with go, and 1 with

tell. In all cases, the context makes it clear that the event represented by the gerund

participle has a negative connotation, which is quite natural since it denotes potential hann.

AIl of the examplesconstrued with the verb be are passive (being made homeless, being

fired, being sued and being moved out of office). The passive is significant represents its

subject as being on the reclining end of the event, Le. helpless, having little or no control

over the situation he is facing. Given the small number of examples of face referring to risk

in proportion to the high number not involving this notion, the use of face ta refer to risk

seems fairly marginal.

105


ln aIl uses of the verb face in our corpus, the gerund-participle complement is

always future and prospective vis-à-vis the matrix:

(357) Flat owners face losing their homes after being landed with a bill for ground rent going back fifteen years. (BNC: KIX 3506)

Thus, above, the event losing exists at a point in time subsequent to that of face.

As regards the type of control relationship holding between the verb face and the

-ing as complement, subject control is always observed. For instance, in (357) above, the

subject of the matrix is also the one who may undergo the event represented by the gerund

participle.


As for aIl of the other verbs occurring with a gerund-participle in this study, the -ing

form is simply the direct object of the verb face. It fulfills the semantic criterion for the

direct object function, as it corresponds to 'that which is faced':

(358) On Tuesday night, many faced losing any savings over ;(50,000. (www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/oct/11/savings-banks)

Anaphoric reference to the -ing by means of a pronoUll, pseudo-cleft constructions, and

active/passive correspondences all yield acceptable results, as the following examples

ill ustrate:

(359) Many faced that.

(360) What many faced was losing any savings over f50,000.

(361) Losing any savings over ;(50,000 was what many faced.

(362) Losing any savings over ;(50,000 was faced by many.

106

Thus, aIl the standard criteria continn that the gerund-participle functions as a direct object

when it occurs as complement of the verbface.


Now that we have looked at the different parameters in play, we should be able to

propose an explanation for temporal and control effects with the verb face. The constant

subsequence relationship felt between the main verb and the gerund-participle is mostly

due to the lexical meaning of face. As with other verbs of risk when the -ing evokes

HARM, the temporal relationship is one of subsequence. More precisely, face in these

cases means 'to be ready to me et face-to-face without withdrawing'. When the -ing

represents a potential harm, as in (358) above for instance, face simply evokes the subject

as being up against a situation where he may be harmed in the future. As was mentioned

above in 3.8.1, the verb face is compatible with a construal in which what is faced is a

future event. Moreover, if one is facing a future event, one is obviously looking towards the

future. It is therefore logical that the gerund-participle' s event be represented as unrealized

in relation ta the occurrence of the main verbe

The control readings observed with the verb face are also explainable by the

semantic content of this verbe When the gerund-participle evokes HARM, what one

actually faces 5s naturally something which may affect oneself. Nonnally, the one who

faces the harm is logicaIly understood as the one who may eventually find himself

actualizing the undesirable event expressed by the gerund-participle. Theoretically,

however, it would seem possible for someone to face an event representing possible harm

which concerns bath himself and other people. This case was not observed in our corpus

and so requires further research in order to be checked out.

107

. 3.9 THE VERBS JEOPARDIZE, ENDANGER, AND IMPERIL


The verbs jeopardize, imperil and endanger are treated together here as they are

close synonyms, and they behave similarly with respect to complementation and temporal

and control effects. 111 examples of jeopardize were examined. As no occurrences of this

verb were· found in our main corpuses, aIl our examples were gathered from a search on

Google. Besides the high-frequency verbs say, get, go, be and have, occurrences were also

gathered for the verbs hold, keep and maintain, as their semantic content seemed to make

them likely partners of jeopardize. AIl the examples in the corpus occurred with the

gerund-participle. As for the lexical meaning of jeopardize, Webster 's Third describes it as

"to expose to danger (as of imminent loss, defeat, or serious harm)" (p. 857). More

precisely, in the great majority of cases in the corpus, the verb jeopardize means 'to put the

future realization of something in jeopardy', as in the following:

(363) The good news is that my mom is doing much better. She was discharged from the hospital after about two and a half weeks, and 1 flew home a couple days after that. 1 wasn't ready to go, but 1 had already missed too much school. Any longer and 1 might have jeopardized getting promoted. Sigh. (hmp3 guru. blogspot.coml)

(364) Our standing committee is prepared to look at this report on May 10. 1 would hope that we aren't going to drag it out here. It might jeopardize going ahead with that report on May10. (charlesburton. blogspot.com/2007 _ 05_ 01_ archive.html)

(365) Please do not leave anything other than what the recycling bin is labelled for. Doing so may jeopardize having that site available as the owner or ALP AR will have to clean up trash and dispose of it at the landfilL (anchoragecreeks.org/pages/links. php )

(366) That raise is what will pay for school this September, so an excessively long delay jeopardizes being able to take aIl the classes rd like to take in order to finish quickly. (coyote-howling.livejoumal.com/tag/em)

108

(367) Answering would jeopardize keeping the entire thing a secret from her; she was smart enough to deduce why it wouldn't involve him anyway, but he wasn't going to encourage that sort ofthought, not for a minute. ( www.harrypotterfanfiction.com/viewstory . php? chapterid== 199695)

(368) It must have been patently obvious to everyone concerned at the time that tbis change in position would jeopardize holding the trial as scheduled. (csc.lexurn.umontreal.ca/en/1989/1989rcs 1-1659/1989rcs 1-1659 .html)

(369) Making use of an approved leave of absence will not jeopardize maintaining the satisfactory acadeinic progress that must be reported annually to the Graduate Dean. (www .mcd. ucsc.edu/ grad/rncdhdbk2007 -08. pd±)

In the examples above, the gerund-participle best fits the category of VALUED OBJECT,

i.e. a valued possession which is se en as potentially endangered. With jeopardize, the -ing

is a projected object which has not yet come into existence. For instance, in (367), keeping

the entire thing a secret from her is something whose existence is felt to be in danger. The

notion of risk present in the meaning of the verb jeopardize thus lies in the fact that a future

event seen as a valued object is put at risk. Moreover, the subject of jeopardize is either an

action which puts the complement'sevent in jeopardy, as in examples (364)-(369), or an

animate subject which jeopardizes the event evoked by the -ing by performing sorne kind

of deed, as in (363). In a few cases, the verb jeopardize was also found with a rneaning

sirnilar to risk's sense of 'face a potential harm':

(370) Please adhere to these parking rules so that you do not jeopardize having your vehicle towed at your expense! (www.ectb.org/ectb/toumarnent_schedule.asp?toumament==2007)

(371) Although this might seem a bit harsh, we cannotjeopardize having our entry forms being late due a few irresponsible parents. (danceruniverse.com/stories/issues/200512/company-feesl)

(372) She adds, "You think 1 wouldjeopardise being away from my child for five to 25 years if 1 even had an inkling that 1 was guilty of sornething?" (www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/remy%20mas%20victim%20spea ks%200ut_1068698)

ln this type of usage, jeopardize means 'to put oneself in danger of sorne potential harm

coming to oneself, and the main verb can be substituted by the verb risk without a great

- - - - - - - - -

109

change in meaning. Although this usage might seem 'improper' or 'sloppy' to sorne

speakers, it shows very clearly the semantic affinity between the verbs risk and jeopardize.

It is interesting to note that the modals could, might, may, would, will, should and

can are used before jeopardize in the majority of the examples in the corpus (59% of aIl

occurrences). lf-ciauses are found in a few cases as weIl. This is due to the fact that a

condition/consequence relationship is often present when jeopardize is followed by a

gerund-participle, the jeopardizing being the consequence of a prior condition, a

phenomenon which can be illustrated by example (363), where if the subject had stayed any

longer by his mother's side at the hospitai (condition), he might have jeopardized getting

promoted (consequence). The same relation is also seen in (365), where answering would

lead to the consequence of putting the future realization of having that site in jeopardy. A

frequent use of the modals and a condition/consequence relation are also found with the

verb endanger in our corpus.

The verbs endanger and imperil are not very frequent with thegerund-participle, as

only 16 examples for endanger and 5 for imperil were gathered from a search on Internet

for the same verbs as forjeopardize. Dictionary definitions for endanger are very similar to

those for jeopardize. Webster 's Third describes endanger as "to bring into danger or peril

of probable harm or loss" (p. 748). In fact, endanger takes on two different actual meanings

in our corpus. The most frequent one, similar to that of jeopardize, is 'to put the future

realization of something in danger':

(373) Should the programme be held nevertheless, it would strongly endanger holding this year's event and aiso next year's contract. (habeascorpus.hulen/pepsiisIand.htm)

(374) A member of the Chilean Truth and Reconciliation Commission, José Zalaquett, has stated that amnesty may not be granted if this endangers getting at the truth. (home. wxs.nlf,-lozlmaneng7 6 .htm)

(375) Philander first put them in mind, that unless they turned back quickly th~y would endanger being benighted. . .

110

(books.google.calbook,s?id=sjQCAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA82&lpg=P A82&dq= %22endanger+being%22&source=web&ots=dBGS2IbU7 &sig=2Hv8N e 7y 03XPdqPGv Y qnHHmthno&h1=fr&sa= X&oi=book _result&resnurn=7 &ct=r esult)

In tbis type of use, the -ing evokes a V ALUED OBJECT, a desired future event whose

realization would be put at risk by sorne other action. The second actual meaning of

endanger in our corpus is similar to the verb risk mearung 'to face a potential harm'. In the

following, endanger means 'to be in danger of sorne potential harm coming to oneself:

(376) Every year, thousands of individuals and incorporated entities become insolvent. Anyone can be subject to this, but there are different insolvency procedures available that can help to tackle the problern. Those that endanger being made insolvent could avoid or escape the risk if they research the prospects further; there are ways to beat it. (www.freshfinance.netlarticles-insolvency.htm)

(377) If you only are into the newest coolest Indie music, you endanger being a status quo version of hipstemess. Shake it up by occasionally going through different phases of music. (chuckdaddyxpress.blogspot.com/)

(378) Others argue that reporters should not carry weapons when covering a war because they endanger being viewed as "taking part" in the combat. (www.rutgersobserver.comlhome/index.cfm?event=displayArticlePrinterFri endly&uStory _id=81 e3b034-b9d9-4566-aOe7-b93e9751 ff51)

In these three examples, the gerund-participle represents HARM.

AlI examples with the verb imperil in the corpus can be replaced by endanger or

jeopardize without a significant change in meaning. This is not surprising as this verb

denotes something very similar to these two verbs when followed by a gerund-participle:

(379) Well this certainly imperils getting a letter of recommendation from this office. (books.google.ca/books?id=5D4kyGqeoC&pg=P A34&lpg=P A34&dq=%22i mperils+getting%22&source=web&ots=xHnZ7afZFo&sig=M4Hp8ihRHb5j eOPh4biCWvesCK w&hl=fr&sa= X&oi=book _result&resnum=2&ct=result)

(380) Doing this will in no way imperil getting military support from the Soviet Union. ( www.walterlippmann.comldocs 15 81.html)

111

(381) IHT encourage practitioners to take note of this report and to highlight the rate of depletion to concemed authorities. In the longer term, failure ta achieve this objective imperils maintaining UK's impressive record in reducing the number of skidding related accidents. (www.iht.org/news/pressreleases/downloadsIPRHighMaintenance220ct04.d oc)

In these examples, imperil means 'to put the future realization of something in peril' and its

complement evokes a V ALUED OBJECT. Considering the small number of examples

found withjeopardize, endanger and imperil, the use ofthese verbs followed by a gerund

participle seems to be relatively infrequent, with endanger and imperilbeing more

characteristic of a formaI style.


In aIl uses of the verbs jeopardise, endanger and imperil in the corpus, the gerund

participle's event is felt to be subsequent with respect to that of the main verb. This is the

case in (380) above and in the following:

(382) Backers of the initiative had little choice but to submit their voter signatures this week, despite the budget impasse. A delay might have jeopardized getting the petitions certified in time for the Feb. 5 ballot. ( www.calcoast.org/news/cpr000051.html)

(383) The point 1 make is, that to have go ne to the trouble and effort ta get this information, it would defeat the object entirely ta get involved in an action that might endanger getting the information back to Squadron H.Q. (www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/78/a4589878.shtml)

Regarding control, the picture is somewhat different with this group of verbs. With

jeopardize, 67 examples (60% of aU occurrences) show non-subject control, i.e. the

understood subject of the complement is not the same as that of the main verb. This is the

case in (382) above, where the subject ofjeopardize is a delay, which cannat be understood

to be the realizer of the gerund-participle' s event. The rest of the occurrences show subject

control, as in (371) above. As one would expect, there is also a correlation between the 'put

at risk' sense ofjeopardize and non-subject control, and between the 'face a potential harm'

112

sense and subject control. The verb endanger follows the same control pattern as

jeopardize. Non-subject control is observed in 56% of aIl cases, as in (383); subject control

readings are obtained for the other examples, as in (375). With imperil, aIl 5 examples

show non-subject control.


It is held here that the gerund-participle plays the role of direct object when it is

used as complement of the verbs jeopardize, endanger and imperil. Consequently, it

corresponds to 'that whieh is jeopardized/endangered/imperilled':

(384) People who miss drill weekends jeopardize getting a good year. (articles.latimes.eom/2004/sep/27/nationlna-bushguard27)

(385) The OER, Offieer Evaluation Reports, was the central foeus of an offieer's career. A bad OER could destroy an officer. A mediocre one could condemn him to being average, and maybe even endanger getting the twenty years neeessary for retirement. (books.google.ca/books?id=QdTUfonI4akC&pg=PA93&lpg=PA93&dq=%2 2endanger+getting%22&source=web&ots=LfF9G Y8zQy &sig=71Vhpd 1 voo FUVPOKmZQTE6sDTL y &hl=fr&sa= X&oi=book _result&resnum= 1 &ct=re suIt)

(386) As involuntary clients, the y might be reluctant to admit abusive behaviours to the therapist, believing that sueh admissions would imperil maintaining custody of their child. (books.google.ca/books?id=eAdbEnyZbeC&pg=P A 198&lpg=P A 198&dq= %22imperil+maintaining%22&source=web&ots=k91J9zKjQ&sig=Y3QrHY G06Sv3ax2GbVmeePMFMbg&hl=fr&sa=X&oi=book_resu1t&resnum=1&c t=result)

The gerund-participle can also be construed as subject of a corresponding paSSIve

construction with these verbs:

(387) Getting a good year is jeopardized by people who miss drill weekends.

(388) Getting the twenty years necessary for retirement eould be endangered by a mediocre OER~

1 \ _--

113

(389) Maintaining custody oftheir child would he imperilled hy such admissions.

In addition, pronoun substitution also confirms the -ing 's function as a direct object with

these verbs:

(390) People who miss drill weekends jeopardize that.

(391) A mediocre OER could endanger it.

(392) Such admissions would imperil that.

Finally, pseudo-cleft constructions yield acceptable results as weIl:

(393) What people who miss drill weekends jeopardize is getting a good year.

(394) What a mediocre OER could endanger is getting the twenty years necessary for retirement.

(395) Maintaining custody of their child is what such admissions would imperil.

Thus, the semantic' criterion and the other standard tests confirm the function of the -ing as

being that of direct object when it is used as a complement of the verbs jeopardize,

endanger and imperil.


We are now in a position to propose an explanation for temporal and control

interpretations with the verhs jeopardize, endanger and imperil. With regard to temporality,

the constant effect of subsequence felt between these verbs and the gerund-participle is

explainable by the three parameters used in this study. The gerund-participle has the

function of direct object in the uses observed, identifying 'that which is

jeopardized/endangered/imperilled'. Since the direct object relation to the main verb is

basically non-temporal and the -ing simply evokes its event in a holistic way, any temporal

relationship between the main verb and its complement is due to the meaning of the matrix.

In most cases with these three verbs, the gerund-participle evokes a future event seen as a

114

V ALUED OBJECT, i.e. something which is still unrealized. In these cases, the meaning of

jeopardize, endanger and imperil is more or less 'to put the future realization of something

in jeopardy/danger/peril'. It is therefore logical, considering the meaning of these verbs and

the fact that the -ing represents something which is put in danger, that the latter be felt to be

situated at a point in time which is future vis-à-vis the main verb. A similar explanation

also applies to the cases where the gerund-participle following jeopardize and endanger

evokes a potential hann, as in (372) and (377) above. Since the harmful event is something

which has not yet been actualized, it is normal for the -ing to evoke this event as

subsequent to the event expresses by the main verb.

Now that we have a better understanding of temporal relationships with these verbs,

we are also better equipped to address the reason why these latter are never found followed

by a to-infinitive complement. The preposition to denotes the idea of a movement between

the main verb's event and the infinitive's, a movement ofwhich the infinitive's event is the

end-point. This movement can be construed as actualized or not, depending on the meaning

of the matrix and the context. However, the respective lexical meanings of jeopardize,

endanger and imperil are not compatible with the idea of a movement or a desire for a

movement leading to actualization. The complement following these verbs is simply 'that

which is put injeopardy/danger/peril' or 'that harm which might occur to the subject ifthey

do x', i.e. a direct object.

As for the control readings observed with jeopardize, endanger and imperil, they

can also be explained by the meaning of these verbs. When a non-subject control reading is

observed, the event evoked by the gerund-participle is not felt to be r~alized by the main

verb's subject. If we consider the meaning of these three verbs, there is nothing to prevent

someone or something from jeopardizing/endangering/imperilling the actualization of an

event which is not necessarily realized by that same subject. It is perfectly conceivable that

someone or something may compromise the future realization of an event by sorne other

agent. On the other hand, as the subject control readings in the corpus show, it is also

possible for one to put in jeopardy sorne future event which the jeopardizer would like to be

able to realize. This is the case in (375), where those who endanger being benighted are

115

also the potential candidates for being benighted. Thus, the respective meanings of

jeopardize, endanger and imperil allow for both subject control and non-subject control

readings with the gerund-participle as complement.

CHAPTER FOUR: CONCLUSION

4.1 INTRODUCTION

116

"Thus important though it is to approach usage with an all-embracing view, the final word, to determine whether or not the proposed system corresponds to reality, belongs to the observed jacts. "

(Hirtle 2007: 5)

Our main goal in this study was to explain the various expressive effects and the

principles underlying the use of the structures 'main verb + complement' with the gerund

participle and the to-infinitive as complements of verbs involving the notion of risk. The

verbs risk, venture, adventure, hazard, chance, dare, face, jeopardize, endanger and

imperil were identified as containing this notion in their semantics and as construable with

an -ing or infinitive complement. The expressive effects accounted for in this study concem

principally the phenomena of temporality and control, two problems which are posed by aU

verbal complementation.

The meaning-based approach adopted in this study is based on principles from both

Cogriitive Linguistics and the Psychomechanics of Language. Our analysis of verbal

complementation with verbs of risk was founded on three explanatory parameters: 1) the

meaning of the complement, 2) the function ' of the complement with respect to the main

verb, and 3) the lexical meaning of the main verbe We adopted the hypotheses proposed by

Duffley (2000; 2006a) for . these three general parameters. A semantic analysis was

conducted with a view to disceming the components of the meanings of each of the verbs

117

examined which were relevant to their interaction with the two complement forms under

study.

In the present chapter, a summary of the fmdings pertaining to usage, temporality

and control with verbs of risk will be presented, before drawing the discussion to a close.

4.2 SUMMARY OF TYPES OF COMPLEMENTATION FOUND IN CORPUS

TABLE 4.2

0% 100%

0% 100%

30% 70%

100% 0%

0% 100%

100% 0%

1000/0 00/0

100% 0%

100% 0%

VERBS OF RISK AND THEIR RELATIVE FREQUENCIES WITH THE

GERUND-P ARTICIPLE AND THE To-INFINITIVE COMPLEMENTS

Table 4.2 above summarizes the occurrences of verbs of risk with the gerund

participle and the to-infinitive in the corpus, aIl sources included. As illustrated by this

table, risk, chance, face, jeopardize, endanger and imperil are found only with a gerund-

118

participle as complement and never with an infinitive. Depending on the lexical meaning of

the verb, the -ing either evokes a potential harm, a risky deed or a valued object seen as

potentially endangered. With the verb risk, which is · the most frequent verb of this group

according to the data in theBNC, the gerund-participle can evoke either HARM or DEED,

depending on the actual meaning of the matrix. Chance, with hs special reference to luck,

means in most cases 'to perform a chancy deed' , although it can be described as 'to take the

chance of sorne harm coming to oneself. The verb face stands apart from the other verbs

studied here, as the idea of risk is not part of its rneaning per se. Indeed, the subject can face

not only a risk but a challenge, as in Community colleges face doing more with less, in

which case there is no notion of risk involved in the message expressed. It is only when the

complement following face evokes a potential harm that risk cornes into the picture. As

regards the verbs jeopardize, endanger and imperil, they also differ from aIl other verbs

considered here in tenns of their respective lexical meaning, as in the majority of cases

their complement represents a potentiaIly endangered valued object. As table 4.2 illustrates,

the verb hazard can occur with both the -ing and the infinitive, although it is more frequent

with the latter. When it is construed with a gerund-participle, it behaves similarly to the

verb risk, i.e. its complement can evoke either HARM or DEED, with HARM being the

most frequent case.

As regards complernentation with a to-infinitive, the verbs venture, adventure and

dare are only found with this type of complement in the corpus. Our research brought out

the fact that sorne notion of movernent is present in the lexical meaning of these three

verbs. With venture, there is an impression that the subject hesitantly advances into the

unknown, a place where possible unwanted consequences may materialize. With adventure,

the subject also goes forward into the unknown, but with a slightly more adventurous state

of mind. Dare puts a special emphasis on courage or boldness; its meaning can be

described as 'to bravely go ahead and perform a risky deed'. The verb hazard also shares in

this notion of rnovernent, as i.t was found to rnean 'to go ahead and actualize an hazardous

event'. Despite the semantic differences between these four verbs, when they are construed

with a to-infinitive the latter always represents DEED. An association between the verbs

venture, adventure, hazard and dare and verbs of linguistic expression was discovered

119

through the search of the corpus data. This is not surprising from a cognitive-linguistic

point of view according to which human language reflects basic human experience: here

the experience is the fairly common one of feeling sorne hesitation before saying

something, not knowing how it is going to be received.

4.3 EXPLANATION OF TEMPORALITY

It has been shown that the gerund-participle complement functions as a direct object

with respect to the main verb in aU of the uses examined in tbis study. The -ing simply

represents its event as 'VERBed' in tbis function: it therefore identifies that which is

'risked', 'chanced' or 'jeopardized'. The semantics of the -ing itself represents an event

holistically without locating it in the past, present or future time-spheres. Any impression of

a temporal relation between the gerund-participle' s event and the matrix is thus not due to

any inherent temporality in the semantics of direct object function, but rather to the

interaction of the -ing' s meaning in this function with the semantic content of the main

verb. Due to the lexical meaning of the verbs studied in this study, the gerund-participle

gives rise to a temporal reading of either simultaneity or subsequence.

In all instances of simultaneity in the corpus, the gerund-participle represents DEED:

risking is construed in these cases as perfonning a risky deed, so that the risking and the

actualization of this deed are in reality one and the same external event, and consequently

simultaneous. The temporal impression of subsequence is found when the gerund-participle

corresponds to HARM or V ALUED OBJECT. In the former case, risking is construed as

'running the risk of incurring sorne fonn of harm by doing sornething risky': the harm is

necessarily understood in this case to be a possible unwanted consequence of the risky

action and therefore future with respect to risk. In the latter case, risking is construed as

'putting sorne valued · object at risk by doing something risky': here the desired realization

of the valued event is put at risk and is consequently understood to be future and non

realized.

120

Regarding the to-infinitive complement, it always produces a temporal effect of

subsequence with the verbs venture, adventure, hazard and dare. The preposition to

expresses here a kinetic orientation potentially leading to a goaVresult, so that the infinitival

phrase fulfills the role of an adverbial specifier, with the preposition to acting as the bridge

between the main verb's event and that of the infinitive, the latter being se en as the end

point of the movement evoked by to. The event of the matrix thus represents a before

position vis-à-vis the infmitive's event and the latter is consequently always prospective

with respect to the main verb's event. Almost all uses of the to-infinitive with verbs of risk

produce this impression of subsequent actualization. The only cases of subsequent

potentiality, i.e. cases where the infinitive's event is non-realized, are those previously

discussed with the verb dare, as in (327). The temporal impressions with verbs of risk are

thus readily accounted for by the explanatory framework adopted in this study.

4.4 EXPLANATION OF CONTROL

It was observed in our corpus that the to-infinitive always produces an impression of

subject control with verbs of risk. This effect can be explained by the function of the to

infinitive and the meaning of the preposition to. In a use such as 1 venture to suggest that

we adjourn, the infinitive's event is representedas the actualized result of the subject's

venturing. The verb venture involves a notion of moving into unknown territory and the

preposition to explicitly represents this notion, with the infinitive suggest being construed

as the term to which this movement leads. Since venturing is conceived as a movement of

the venturer to the actualization of the suggesting, the realizers of both events are

understood to be one and the same entity. These findings are consistent with what has been

observed previously with other verbs in infinitival complement constructions (cf. Duffley

1992; 2006a) and so constitute further confirmation of the semantic contribution of the

preposition to to the control readings observed in infinitival complement constructions.

With the gerund-participle, both subject and non-subject control readings were

observed in the corpus. These readings have been explained by the interaction between the

- - - - - - - -

121

meaning of the -ing, its function as direct object and the semantic content of the main verb.

An event which is represented as a risky deed risked, hazarded, or chanced by someone is

necessarily seen as something which that person performs himself. When the gerund

participle following these three verbs evokes a potential harm, coreferentiality between the

subjects of the matrix and the complement is usually understood, as the harm is something

that the main verb's subject brings upon himself by performing the risky deed (we will see

in a moment however that it is also conceivable that the hannful event not be realized by

the subject of the matrix). When the gerund-participle corresponds to a valued object, on ,

the other hand, non-subject control readings are relatively frequent: here the valued , object

can be something that the jeopardizer wishes to do, as in (371), but it is often the case that a

jeopardizer puts at risk the future realization of an event that someone else wants to

perform, as in (383).

An interesting relationship between animacy and control was also observed in the

corpus, as a correlation between inanimate subjects and non-subject control was

discovered. This correlation can be seen in Table 4.4 below:

TABLE 4.4

122

0,5% 100% 0% 99,5% 100% 0%

00/0 NIA NIA 1000/0 100% 0%

1,5% 100% 0% 98,5% 100% 0%

0% NIA NIA 100% 100% 0%

2% 100% 0% 98% 100% 0%

2% 100% 0% 98% 100% 0%

56% 0% 1000/0 44% 90% 10%

69% 18% 820/0 31% 100% 0%

100% 0% 100% 0% NIA NIA

OCCURRENCES OF VERBS OF RISK WITH INANIMATE/ANIMATE

SUBJECTS VERSUS SUBJECT AND NON-SUBJECT CONTROL READINGS

The table shows firstly that the verbs risk, venture, adventure, hazard, chance, dare and

face occur almost exclusively with animate subjects. In such cases, subject control is

always ohserved. Interestingly, jeopardize, endanger and imperil - the verbs in our corpus

which most often produce non-suhject control - occur with inanimate subjects in the

majority of cases. This is the case for example in (382) above, where the main verb's

subject is a delay. In aH such cases withjeopardize, the subject of the main verb and that of

the gerund-participle complement are not the same. On the other hand, whenjeopardize has

an animate subject, a subject control reading is almost always observed. This is also the

case for the verb endanger which shows non-subject control whenever it is predicated of an

inanimate subject. When it occurs with an ànimate subject, however, the latter is a1ways felt

to he the same as that of the complement (subject control). Imperil, for its part, occurs only

with inanimate subjects in the corpus and shows only non-subject control. With the

123

exception of risk, aIl the other verbs which were found with inanimate subjects show

subject control. These are relatively rare in the corpus; a few cases are presented helow:

(396) lt was realized that such a policy risked leaving Soviet Russia as the dominant force in a post-nazi Europe. (BNC: CE7 1587)

(397) A major dredging programme, which would have risked drying out much of Botswana's Okavango Delta, has been cancelled. (BNC: 137 121)

(398) Non-Iethal guns have to he accurate, other they risk killing people rather than merely incapacitating them (CPLQ: New Scientist).

(399) Any vines that dare to lean against thls tree risk being vigorously chewed. (BNC: EFF 323)

(400) Hot and spicy, this room (right) dares ~o he different with bold, rich colours. (BNC: BPF 1607)

Examples (396)-(398) are all of the same type: as is the case with aIl uses of verbs of risk

predicated of an inanimate subject and having a gerund-participle complement whose

subject is someone or something else, the inanimate subject is always something which can

be conceived as potentially causing harm. In most cases, these inanimates can also be

argued to involve sorne kind of manpower. The subjects of the main verb in (399) and

(400) also seem to have been personified; a subject control reading thus poses no problem.

Despite this handful of examples where the matrix' s inanimate subject is not the same as

that of the complement, the general tendency remains nonetheless that verbs of risk

occurring with inanimate subjects show non-subject while those with animate subjects have

subject control. This correlation of subject control with animates is obviously connected to

their higher degree of agentivity (cf. Valin 1994).

. Finally, the two examples below are the only ones in the corpus where non-subject

control was found with the verb risk:

(401) The board accepted my proposaI that Bogcaster Council should seek to appoint a strategie ICT partner. My report was full of modernizing jargon, so no one was going to challenge its conclusions. To do so would have

124

risked being regarded as old-fashioned and that would never do. (CPI.Q: Computer Weekly)

( 402) Clinton and Al Gore are still !ockers at heart. The day before the forest conference in Portland, Oregon, Clinton and Gore hoped to attend an environmental rock concert featuring Neil Y oung, Kenny Loggins and Carole King. But political instincts won out: Bill and Al decided that attending the concert risked incurring the wrath ofloggers. (CPI.Q: Time)

These 'exceptional' cases ofnon-suhject control with the verb risk are c,?nnected to the fact

that the subject of the matrix is itself a verbal form, in one case a to-infinitive and in the

other a gerund-participle. The subjects of the main verbs thus themselves contain an

implicit subject (cf. Duffley 2006a: 161 ff.; 1992: 118 ff.). It is this implicit subject and not

the event expressed by the infinitive or the gerund-participle which is .understood to he the

possible realizer of the -ing complement' s event: in (401), the subject is understood to be

anyone on the board, while in (402) it is Bill Clinton and Al Gore. In both cases, the

actualization of the first event by the implicit subject risks bringing down upon this person

or persons the actualization of the event expressed by the complement. This type of use is

rare, but it is fascinating for the insight ît gives into the presence of a 'generalized person'

or 'event-originator' in non-finite verb forms suchas the gerund-participle and the

infinitive. l The presence of this representation of implicit person poses the problem of

control with the gerund-participle and the to-infinitive complements, as the implicit subject

potentially caUs for specification and can be tagged as either identical or distinct from the

subject of the main verbe The use of non-finite verb forms as inanimate subjects promises

to be an exciting avenue for future research into control.

1 For further details on the 'generalized person', cf. Duffley (1992; 2006a).

---- - -

125

4.5 CONCLUDING REMARKS

The meaning-based approach chosen for this study has been shown to be successful

in explaining temporal and control effects with verbs of risk. The three parameters

proposed by Duffley (2000; 2006a) have stood for the test of usage with the ~et of verbs

examined here. It was our contention that the semantics of the matrix verb needed to be

taken into account in order to pro vide a complete explanation of usage with the gerund

participle and the to-infinitive complement. In our view, temporality and control in

constructions of the type 'main verb + complement' cannot be explained with such abstract

categories as tense or thematic roles, or by only taking into account the syntactic

configuration of these constructions. Rather, the problems of temporality and control can

only be accounted for adequately by the semantic interaction between the meanings and the

functions of the elements involved in these constructions.

Thè conclusions of this study are limited to cases where verbs of risk are followed

directly by a non-finite complement. Uses where there is another element between the

matrix and the gerund-participle or infinitive, as in She risked her life to save her daughter,

are more complex and open up a whole new vista for investigation. The role of animacy in

control, which is new and uncharted territory, also seems to be a very promising avenu~ for

future research. It would he interesting to see whether animacy plays a role with other types

of verbs as weIl, and if so, how it does so. Finally, the role of non-finite verb forms as

subjects also needs to be explored further. Such constructions represent a complex and

intriguing semantic configuration in which you have a subject within a subject! But

pursuing this question would unfortunately take us beyond the subject. .. ofthis thesis.

126

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